Playgrounds Can Be for Adults Too!

Many kids and parents alike have been anxiously awaiting the reopening of our local playgrounds, which occurred last Friday.

While the little ones are frolicking around the playground getting their fair share of physically activity, you too can take this time to squeeze in a workout!

Here’s how:

*1-2 sets of 8-15 reps is recommended for general fitness*

Pull Ups                                                        Tricep Dips

 

Push Ups                                                       Squats

 

Calf Raises                               Plank

 

Run Circuit                                                                 Anything else that gets you moving!

As Hal and Joanne would say, “Keep Fit and Have Fun!”

A Walk Through History

With the weather warming up, now is a great time to head out and explore Barrhead’s 19 kilometers of walking trails! But did you know that in addition to getting active, these walks can be educational, too? Along the trails you will find sign posts, each one with a historical tidbit about Barrhead!

Click the link below for a trail map that shows you where all of the historical sign posts are located:

WalkingTrailsMap_uEpVkC.pdf (168.84 kb)

How many can you find? Show us a historical sign that you’ve found using the hashtag #BARRHEADCREATES, for an extra entry into the weekly challenge prize draw!

COVID Crafting with Parks & Rec - Dandelion Wish Craft

The first signs of spring have sprung in the backyards of Barrhead – bitterwort, puffball, lion’s tooth – or better known around here as dandelion!

Although considered a weed, dandelions are an important early food source for pollinators such as bees. Butterflies, moths, some bird species like pine siskins, mammals such as the chipmunk, as well as black and grizzly bears will also feed on this member of the Asteraceae family.

      

Historically, dandelions were not classed as a weed and rather were cultivated for food and medicinal purposes; all parts of the dandelion are entirely edible! The origins of blowing on a dandelion puffball and making a wish are not clear, but some say it may have begun as early as the 1800s. Today, we’re going to make your very own dandelion wishing puffball!

First let’s gather our supplies, you will need:

  • Cotton swabs- the amount you need depends on how full you want your puffball
  • White, brown, or yellow pompom- the bigger the pompom the more surface area you have to cover with “seeds”
  • Paper straw- a thicker straw like a bubble tea straw can be used for little ones to make it easier for them to tuck in their wish
  • Small flower pot- any other vessel can be used as well – an empty clean jar, an old coffee mug, use your imagination!
  • Acrylic paint and brushes or sponges- or any other items you’d like to use to decorate your vessel such as stickers, pom poms, or stamps
  • Filler- use rocks, marbles, sand or other filler in your flower pot
  • Hot glue gun and glue sticks
  • Scissors
  • Pencil
  • Green construction paper and pipe cleaners- for crafting your leaves if you choose to add some
  • Strip of paper and pen- for writing down your wish!

Start by plugging in your hot glue gun and allowing it to heat up. While you wait, take your cotton swabs and cut them in half to form the dandelion seeds.

  

Once your glue gun is heated, glue a pompom to one end of your straw to create the seed head. Next, add glue to the cut end of the cotton swabs and press them into your pompom to add the seeds. Add as many as you like!

Now we can add the leaves – dandelions have unique leaves and we can look up a picture or trace a real dandelion leaf to get the pattern right. Draw out the leaves on green construction paper with pencil and when your happy with them, go ahead and cut them out. Then glue on a green pipe cleaner in the center of each leaf to form the leaf vein.

  

Let’s set aside the dandelion and work on our flower pot; decorate your pot however you like by either painting a pattern, gluing on decorations like pompoms, or covering in stickers. If you used paint, wait for it to dry before moving on to the next step.

Once your flower pot is ready, add a filler such as rocks or sand to help hold the dandelion in place.

Now for the most important part – think of a wish for your dandelion! This can be a wish for yourself or a wish for someone special that you are gifting the dandelion to. Once you decide on your wish, write it down on a strip of paper and roll it up tightly. Place the paper inside the straw so it will always stay with your wishing dandelion.

  

Finally, we are going to insert the dandelion into the filler, then do the same with your dandelion leaves.

Use your imagination with this craft – if dandelions aren’t your thing, try making a paper daffodil, daisy, or another favorite plant.

We would love to see your creation – tag a photo of your craft with #BarrheadCreates to share what you’ve made! 

Why volunteering is easier, and more important, thank you think

The smallest actions make the biggest difference. Feel good, make friends, and build a meaningful community around you with ease.

 

It's scary out there lately. You don't have to look far to find online posts about taking care of ourselves and forgetting about our neighbours. What happened to what we as Albertans (and Canadians) have always been proud to embrace: a strong sense of community? The good news is that it hasn't gone anywhere. Ask anyone you meet if they want their community to flourish and succeed and their answer will be a resounding "Yes!"

If that's true, then why aren't more people doing it? Well, there is this mentality that you need a lot of free time, a lot of money, and the heart of a saint to make a difference. This is so far from the truth. There are lots of ways you can make a meaningful impact on your community doing something you enjoy with little investment of both your time and money.

Animal Lovers and the Great Outdoors

If you have a sixth sense when it comes to animals or are blessed with a green thumb, there are a few hands-on activities you can participate in with organizations like B.A.R.S.,  Barrhead 4-H, or the Community Garden. Whether it's playing with animals, getting your hands dirty, or doing some research on places to buy vegetable seeds, there is something your skills are invaluable for - with very little time invested.

People Persons Wanted

If you have a knack for connecting with fellow humans, there is no shortage of fun and rewarding groups awaiting your arrival. Unleash your inner child and spend a night showcasing something new to the kids at FCSS Youth. Maybe you love a good game of cards - the folks at the Hillcrest Lodge have countless opponents to challenge. The impact you can have on your neighbours can change the world, even if all you have to offer is a few meaningful hours on a single day.

Anything Less People-y?

So maybe you don’t want a lot of face time with new people. No problem! The Barrhead Public Library can't wait to give you a solitary project. They are always working on new events and activities for the community and they would welcome someone who wants to do a bit of research or event planning. So is the Barrhead Museum & Historical Society.

I’d Rather Call The Shots

Your leadership skills can absolutely be used to make big decisions while other agencies or volunteers do the grunt work. Every major event in Town has a committee that does the planning and organizing like the Pumpkin Walk Committee. The SDAB needs people to hear appeals and render decisions on future development in Town - and they meet twice a year at best. Decide how to showcase Barrhead to international guests as a member of the Twinning Committee. The list of power positions available is almost endless.

 

If nothing else, take with you that volunteering in your community is so much more than ladling at a soup kitchen (unless you love it in which case, carry on!) There are many easy ways to enrich your community while doing something you actually like. Check out the organizations linked above or search for something completely new in our Town Directory.

 “Great things are created by a series of small things brought together.” -Vincent Van Gogh

 

Barrhead Mural

Communities in each province and territory across Canada will create sections of the overall mural that will connect Canada through art. Every participating city or town will create a section of the mural made up of 400-750 individual tiles that symbolizes their community.

Each of these Community Mural sections will stand alone as a mural for that particular community. Then, each of these sections of the mural will be become one of the many storybook pages within the overall mural to form the ultimate visual time capsule and create a legacy for a proud nation.

As each painting is part of a community mural, each community mural is part of the Canada Mosaic Mural. Each community mural virtually connects to other community murals resulting in a massive coast to coast uniflied mosaic.

Throughout the Country, this equates to 100,000’s tiles that will comprise an overall image of train cars connecting Canadians from far and wide!

How it works:

The Canada Mosaic Mural team consults with each Community to learn about important and interesting moments that define the community, its history and its citizens to design key elements for mural.

Lewis Lavoie designs a conceptual mural for approval by the Community.

Your community invites participants to paint in workshops facilitated by our Canada Mosaic Mural team.

With 4×4 inch aluminum primer-coated panels, brushes and paint, participants will be encouraged to leave their mark by creating a painting that represents their community from their own creative perspective.

Every painting will be a story and will become a piece of a much bigger story.

The completed tiles created by the community are assembled into a large mural grid, magically transforming the paintings into a unified mosaic that will represent your community.

There are NO DIGITAL EFFECTS – the mural will be 100% hand painted uniting to form another image.

Upon its completion, the community mural will be permanently assembled and protected so it will stand as a legacy piece for decades to come – becoming a key piece of the Canada Mosaic Mural.

After a Community Mural is installed, unveilings can be turned into big events.

Participants make up large crowds to see how their personal artwork finds its place in the big picture and come back time and time again to show friends and family members!