(Teddy bears are displayed for sale inside the Starbucks Corp. Dewata Coffee Sanctuary store in Bali, Indonesia- Photo Gettyimages)
Instead of an Easter egg hunt, there is a new kind of hunt this year. A stuffed bear hunt has started all over Canada. You can social distance while keeping the kids entertained as they try to spot the stuffed bears and count how many they see.
This bear hunt started when people got inspired by the book “We’re Going on a Bear Hunt”, by Michael Rosen.
I noticed a post on a Facebook page by Stittsville’s Kim Herrington and was inspired to reach out to her. Kim Herrington authored the book, “The Adventures Of Bali Bear”, and is encouraging people to put bears in their windows. Kim and her husband, John, began their book series when they lived in Bali, Indonesia for 10 years. Tiny Ted, the stuffed bear who is the protagonist of the book has traveled to many countries besides Bali, like Cambodia, Malaysia, Philippines, the USA (NC, SC, and Ohio) as well as Canada, Thailand, and Singapore.
Gander, Newfoundland was the first Canadian place to start the hunt in Canada. Then Kim Baglole who is originally from Gander continued the hunt in PEI. She spotted as many as 541 bears in one day, according to Newfoundland’s The Chronicle Herald. The movement then spread to places like Brantford, Ont, and Edmonton, Alberta as well as Labrador.
The book is written in English for kids from 3 to 7 years old and teaches them lessons of friendship and collaboration as well as the Indonesian word Jalan Jalan which means trip but also means walk. The book has a hidden Tiny Ted for the little ones to look for.
If you would like to put your own Tiny Ted in your window, you can purchase him as well as the book here: https://www.bookdepository.com, www.barnesandnoble.com, or through https://www.amazon.com/Adventures-Bali-Bear-Ja…/…/1946329096.
So choose your favorite bear, put him or her in the window and then go take a walk to see how many you can spot.
As well as looking for bears, children can also take part in a virtual Easter egg hunt created by Code Ninjas, a franchise company in Ottawa that teaches kids how to code. More information can be found here: https://www.codeninjas.com.
Many Stittville residents have also taken the liberty of painting rocks with inspirational messages and well as hiding eggs in their bushes. Take a walk and look as you pass by to see if you can spot any in your neighborhood.
As always, stay healthy, stay safe and stay home.