Mondays, Thursday-Sundays Toddler Open Play PLAY – A wonderful way for kids to stay active and have fun! There are options for both little ones and older kids to enjoy a clean, bright and fully padded space. Add some fun-filled movement to the week! Free Spirit Yoga + Fitness + Play | $12-$105 Freespiritbend.com/open-play Tuesdays […]
Bend Nest
Bend Nest is a place to discuss, consider and laugh about all that parenting brings. A quarterly magazine produced by some of the finest writers, editors and photographers in Central Oregon, Bend Nest is smart and informed.
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Traditions & Festivals
Bring Home Holiday Traditions & Festivals from Around World
As soon as the season shifts, families across Central Oregon turn their attention to the upcoming holidays—Thanksgiving and Christmas in particular. While both holidays are beloved by many, there is a multitude of lesser-known vibrant celebrations that take place around the world during the colder months. Many of these festivals share a common theme of […]
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Food Is Love
This holiday season, celebrate stress-free meals!
The holidays are a treasured time of gathering and appreciation for family and friends, often surrounded by food. In every culture and tradition, food is used to show love, feed a hungry soul or give thanks to how far we have come. The holidays and food simply go together! Here are some tips for “lessening […]
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Senior Moments
Central Oregon’s Council on Aging helps bridge the generation gap
“Inter-generational interaction is the best gift we can give, to the young and to the old.” That’s the advice of Central Oregon’s Council on Aging communications director Denise Labuda for anyone looking for a way to reach out this holiday season. “That inter-generational connection is hard to keep alive right now because of COVID,” she […]
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Close to the Heart
A Holiday Celebration of Local Artisans
This season, Bend Nest has a present for you! We’ve been searching near and far for the finest holiday gifts on offer this season. And, not surprisingly, we found them right here in our backyard. For unique, handmade items, made by Central Oregon artists and creators, look no further than these pages. We’ve curated our […]
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Music Therapy
Where Words Fail, Music Speaks
Dr. Debasish Mridha once said that “music can heal the wounds that medicine can’t touch.” If this is true, then music therapy can provide the healing balm to soothe a troubled soul. Many people have experienced better emotional well-being from their relationships with music. Instinctively we know how good it feels to listen to a […]
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A Good Kind of Fire
Backyard bonfires stoke comfort and creativity
Before modern civilization became inundated with distractions like television, internet and ways to fill the time, there was fire. Long after humanity, there will be fire. During the parched summer months, we know how dangerous the tiniest spark can be in Central Oregon. However, building and enjoying a fire is the best part of our frigid winters! In […]
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Taking A Toll
Parental Compassion Fatigue: Coping with kids and COVID
Parenting through over a year of COVID shutdowns, quarantines and ever-changing restrictions was challenging for most parents. It meant extended stretches of time in intense parenting mode broken only by switching into teacher mode and sometimes counselor mode to help soothe children’s fears and anxieties. Even with school back in session, parents have a heavy […]
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Bridge Meadows Opens Doors in Redmond
Adoptive families and elders will begin to move into their new homes in November
Based in Portland, Oregon, Bridge Meadows is an intergenerational community that provides housing and alternatives to foster care. The newly opened Redmond location is its third such development in Oregon, after the two established in the Portland area. The new development responds to Central Oregon’s critical need for safe, affordable housing and permanency focused alternatives […]
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Child Care Needs Alleviated for COCC and OSU-Cascades Students
Child care has been a need in Central Oregon for quite some time
A $242,700 federal grant recently awarded to Central Oregon Community College will provide funding over four years to alleviate child care costs for low-income students. The funds will also help launch the Bend-based Little Kits Early Learning & Child Care Center at Oregon State University-Cascades, a year-round program with an integrated teacher-training component. “Child care has […]
