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12
Jun, 2010
The California ScienCenter is TREE-Mendous!
This morning, Aubrey and I were treated to a special tour of the California ScienCenter’s Exploring Trees Inside and Out exhibit and we had so much fun, we almost couldn’t handle it. OK, Aubrey had a small breakdown of 3 year old proportions on the way home because it really was an exciting outing for her! Parents, take note – she has been post-morning activity napping for almost 3 hours! WOOHOO!
The California ScienCenter is one of those super fun, family/kid oriented science museums that is hands on, interactive and educational! There is so much to see, touch, climb, ride, sniff, listen to, watch and eat there, that you can’t actually cover it all in one day, but we went specifically to check out the Exploring Trees exhibit. Exploring Trees Inside and Out is a collaborative project of the Arbor Day Foundation and Dimensions Educational Research Foundation and is sponsored by Doubletree Hotels as part of their Think Trees initiative… you know the hotel with those AMAZING chocolate chip cookies? Yeah – them. Am I eating one of those amazing cookies right now? Hell yes.
“Hey Mommy! Come in with me!”Exploring Trees Inside and Out is located in the center’s Ecosystems wing and is geared towards little ones aged 2 through 10. This exhibit aims to help them understand the significance of trees within our ecosystem and allows the kids to see different perspectives of life forms who live in harmony with trees – like birds, squirrels, bugs and humans!
Kids are beckoned by a climbing tree with tall canopies and a slide that lands in a pile of leaves, a crawl through log, a giant hollow acorn, an oversized bird nest, coloring stations, scented tree smells stations, bird house building stations and – what I thought was the coolest – a green screen/video monitor station where they can dress up in woodland creature costumes and star in their own wilderness show!
My little Duck-Footed Green Croc Cardinal! (It’s a VERY RARE species)
I can’t recommend this adventure enough for families with the appropriate aged kids. It can get a little rambunctious in the climbing tree for wee ones under two, so supervision is important.
Ron, the Head of Education for the ScienCenter tells us all about the exhibit
Best part: it’s FREE. They accept donations and parking is $8 per car (cash only) so overall, it’s a super affordable outing of an amazing caliber, especially if you have more than one child. Take advantage and treat your kids to a special, fun filled day that you’ll feel good about too!
Where: California ScienCenter
When: Open daily from 10am-5pm
Exploring Trees Inside and Out is there from May 28-September 26, 2010
Tags: Amy Anderson • Arbor Day Foundation • California Science Center • Dimensions Educational Research Foundation • Doubletree Hotels • Exploring Trees Inside and Out • Exposition Park • museums
05
Jun, 2010
Interracial Marriages: They're Not Just For Breakfast Anymore
I’m pretty excited about this article from CNN.com! According to a Pew Research Center report, interracial marriages are at an all time high! So I think this means I might be able to FINALLY marry one of these white dudes I keep dating.
Here’s the article: http://www.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/06/04/pew.interracial.marriage/index.html
Sometimes, brown people get crap from other similar brown people for not dating/marrying within their brownness. I’m going to be completely honest here and let it be known that I have never, ever dated (or married) a non-white guy. Or a woman. Or an animal. It’s not that I wouldn’t – the guy part, that is – but, I’m not kidding, a brown person has never asked me out. Except once an Asian American guy asked me out and he was shorter than me, bald and had a weird body. I would have said no to this guy in any shade of skin. It wasn’t because he was of Asian decent.
I have a nice white fella now and I’m hoping to hang on to this one. Hey he’s tall and can reach stuff on the top cabinet shelf without having to get out a step stool. Also good for lifting heavy objects (reason 1003 I could never be a lesbian – someone’s got to lift stuff). But at the end of the day, all I know is: People are people, so why should it be… we can’t just date and marry whomever the hell we want and everyone else can just mind their own business? Right?
Paul and Stevie pretty much summed it all up waaaay back in 1982. Easy listen on…
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Tags: Amy Anderson • cnn.com • interracial marriages • marriage
04
Jun, 2010
SootheTime & Coverplay! Life Is Getting Easier & Safer For Babies & Their Parents
sootheTIME/zzzTIME:
Richard White, VP of Marketing for sootheTIME
I recently attended two really cool events to learn more about some new products for babies and their parents. The products were are all about safety and convenience. Even though my little one is too big for these products now, I wanted to share them with you here because they are really awesome!
First up was sootheTime’s new line of sleep products, zzzTIME. When Aubrey was an infant – over two years ago – I remember being told and then, thinking, that the SwaddleMe and the Miracle Blanket were the best products out there for wrapping up my baby for a night of successful sleep. Then, around four months, I switched her to a sleep sack/wearable blanket, but she outgrew it really quickly. I didn’t know a company would come along and improve upon these products, but sure enough, that’s exactly what zzzTIME has done. They have a great line of four infant sleep products:
- Snooze Wrap Plus – a swaddling blanket for 0-3 months. Big improvements are the easier and more secure wrapping capabilities and options for allowing free movement of arms and legs. A built in Cradle Support Pad that minimizes that crazy bald spot and flat head! Works with the Snooze Sheets.
- Snooze Sack (in two stages) – wearable blanket. Big improvements are a bottom up zipper that allows for easy diaper changes and Comfort Vents that provide airflow so baby doesn’t sweat or overheat. Stage 1 works with the Snooze Sheets.
- Snooze Sheets – Crib sheets that work with the Snooze Wrap Plus and Sage 1 Snooze Sack. Special Sleep Stabilizers open up to secure to the Snooze Sheets and keep baby in a safe, back sleeping position in the center of the crib, reducing the risk of SIDS.
- Sleepzies – One piece, long sleeve body suits to use with Snooze Wrap Plus or Snooze Sack. Tailored to fit easily over baby’s head and bottom snaps for easy diaper changes.
This dolly models a Snooze Wrap Plus and Aubrey decided she needed a plastic lemon
These awesome zzzTIME products are available exclusively at Babies ‘R’ Us nationwide and will be expanding into other stores soon!
COVERPLAY & TOTS TRAVEL TOO:
The next super cool product and program I learned about is the Coverplay! The event was an official Ladies Who Launch gathering and was held at the Marriott Residence Inn in lovely downtown Burbank.
These smart, business minded mamas, Allison Costa and Amy Feldman, have an awesome product called Coverplay. It’s basically a machine washable, easy on the eyes, play yard slip cover. Sounds simple, because it is. It’s one of those products that makes you go, “Now why didn’t I think of that?!” Your kid yerps in the play yard – you end up hosing it off in the yard or scrubbing it in a really awkward, not very effective way. They can get really dirty and unsanitary and are very difficult to clean.
With a Coverplay, you just take it off the two pieces and throw them in the wash, put them back on… VOILA! Clean play yard. And they are actually really easy to take on and off – it’s not like taking apart and reassembling your front-facing car seat that you need an engineering degree for (such a pain).
And, for the really cool part, Amy and Allison signed a deal with five Marriott brands to offer COVERPLAY for the new Tots Travel Too program and Coverplays are now available at more than 2,500 Courtyard, Fairfield Inn & Suites, SpringHill Suites, Residence Inn and TownePlace Suites hotels. The Tots Travel Too program offers a great baby/toddler travel package to make hotel stays with your little ones SO much easier. The packages include a travel crib with a nice clean Coverplay on it, take home bathtub toys, nightlights, baby toiletries, electrical outlet covers for your room and disposable bibs for the breakfast area of the hotel. This is such a great idea and the only downside is I wish they had had this program when Aubrey was a baby. It can be really difficult staying in a hotel with a baby and these small, simple items can make all the difference in the world.
So baby mamas, there you go! Some new and wonderful stuff to make life just a little easier for you! Ahhhhhhh…
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Tags: Amy Anderson • Coverplay • Marriott • SoothTime • swaddle blankets • Tots Travel Too • traveling with babies
