Today I discovered this interesting article from National Wildlife Federation magazine called Top Spring Birding Spots. Yes, Spring has sprung –even if Reno is expecting snow tomorrow! Closer to home — We had fun this weekend watching the quail and house finches at the bird feeders. The cottontail bunny family was active, too. The baby is so cute! Kids love to look for birds. They learn so quickly what to look for, too! I have other blogs on this subject. Check here.
Last Sunday’s Wall Street Journal Sunday Business Page had this great article by Jeff D. Opdyke called The 15 Money Rules Kids Should Learn. Hopefully the link will stay valid. If it doesn’t, I found a blog by Larry Nusbaum here where you can see his commentary and the list of rules.
The Orange County Register has the first articles that I’ve seen this year on the Grunion Run! Samantha Gowan’s blog article was posted on March 11th. Laylan Connelly’s blog article was posted March 29th. Here is a list of California Beaches where you might find the little spawning fish! You can also check out my other blogs for more Grunion information or the http://www.grunion.org site. Play this cute video of 5 year old Emily explaining what a grunion run is! The page has both windows and apple versions.
Sandra Barrera’s article ‘Ecosystems’ prove it’s a small world after all in the 3/28/10 Sunday Long Beach Press-Telegram identifies a good exhibit to take the kids to go see. The exhibit has eight Zones – each one illustrates a different ecological principle. The Ecosystems exhibit just opened on March 25th. Here’s the Press Release. It is at the California Science Center at 700 Exposition Park Drive in Los Angeles and open from 10 am to 5 pm daily. It is suggested to get reservations for the new exhibit ahead of time.
Ecosystems Info: Admission to Ecosystems exhibits is free; however, to provide a quality guest experience, entry will be regulated with advance reservations which can be acquired online, by phone or in person at the Box Office. A service or convenience fee will apply. There will also be a line for those who do not make an advance reservation. Priority entry to Ecosystems will be available with an IMAX ticket purchase or for Science Center members. For details, visit the California Science Center website at www.californiasciencecenter.org or phone (213) 744-2019.
Today I read my Sunset Magazine from cover to cover. Got on-line to hopefully find the First Person article by Anne Lamott but instead I found the article on Portland’s Chinatown in Spring with all the cherry blossoms blooming: Portland day trip: Old Town Chinatown. Sounds like great fun. I do love Portland.
Portland is very kid and family friendly. This Deliciousbaby link has some good ideas. Our family has enjoyed the Children’s Museum, the Oregon Zoo and Powell’s Book Store. Some other suggestions are on Disney’s family.com site. OregonMom.com is even more plentiful. That should keep you full of ideas for a while!! Have fun!!
Grandpa Ron and I had a wonderful time with Aunt Rose last night! It had been several years since we had last visited her. Shame on us! After dinner at the local Elephant Bar restaurant we continued our catching up with her over coffee back at her house. We had a great time! Hope to do it again soon!
🙂
I found the Numbers page of the March 22 & 29, 2010, Business Week fascinating. I wanted to link to it but couldn’t find the page on-line. I know it is getting more and more expensive to get a college degree every year – BUT – it is definitely worth it in the long run. Most colleges and universities have programs to help. I believe it is very important to start early to instill in your young children a love of learning – and a lot of it is done by watching your example!
So, I will share the facts I thought very interesting:
Using data gathered since 2000 and ending in February 2010, the unemployment rates were binned by level of education. Here are the results.
Of the people who had Bachelor or higher degrees, 5.0% were unemployed.
Of the people who had Associate degrees or some college, 8.0% were unemployed.
Of the people who had high school diplomas but no college,10.5% were unemployed.
Of the people who had not earned a high school diploma, 15.6% were unemployed
Nobody got fantastically big raises for 2009; however, the median salary for advanced degree holders was triple the median salary of people with less than a high school diploma!
All right. Then what?
I found an interesting article called Educational Systems of Japan and the US on the University of Michigan website that discusses the different emphasis put on education in Japan and the US. I found the whole study food for thought.
Ok….
So, how do we help our kids? Ahhhh……
I have found a great website Helping Children Succeed in School by the University of Illinois Extension (University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign) for the adults. Mom & Dad, Grandma & Grandpa — do take some time to peruse this wealth of information and absorb the guidance.
Here’s a fun, educational page for the kids. Yes, the two adjectives fun and educational can be used at the same time! 🙂
Known as the “shortest railway in the world,” the Los Angeles landmark Angels Flight is planned to reopen on April 15th with its runs up and down Bunker Hill. Current plans are that it will still only cost a quarter, but that might change in the future. It had closed following the death of an 83 year old man and injuries to seven others when the brakes failed on one of the cars in 2001. The California Public Utilities Commission has recertified the railway after Angels Flight Railway Company fixed the defects that caused the accident.
Joe Thompson, the Cable Car Guy, has this Angels Flight info on his website. Dace Taube’s Angel Flight page has a 1996 Quicktime movie and several old photographs from 1898-1960. Try this link from LAist of the funicular railway for a Rich Alossi video of test runs last January as noted by Zach Behrens. Check out Mike Ebert’s Virtual Ride from Saturday, Feb. 24, 1996, when it reopened a short distance away from its original site after an almost 27 year absence.
When our daughter was small she loved to go to Happy Hollow Park & Zoo in San Jose, CA. A couple years ago it closed. Just saw that there will be a great Re-Opening on March 20, 2010. Check out the photos in the San Jose Mercury News article By Mayra Flores De Marcotte! How great will that be for the young adults with small children of their own who remembered the fun they had in the park so long ago! As part of the Measure P Safe Neighborhood Parks and Recreation bond measure approved by voters in 2000, the park closed in 2008 to undergo a $72 million green renovation. Sneak-A-Peek of the ‘new’ park here! Here’s a list of the Yelp Old Memories – it will be fun to see how the new ones after March 20 will compare!
Oh my gosh! I laughed out loud! What an entertaining woman! Gotta love her! Check out http://5kidswdisabilities.wordpress.com for just wonderful blogs! What a great ending to a frustrating day!! Oh, my! How she made me laugh! There is always something extra going on! What a special person – couple – to take in these kids and to have such a great outlook! Kudos to you! 🙂
Check out my other blogs for ideas and activities to do with kids on https://mygrandmasue.wordpress.com by the author of the award-winning children’s book Grandpa, Do It! I Do It, Too! 🙂
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