Sunday's Plate - Pockets!

We've been working on some new meals that our kids really love. One of those new meals involves won ton wrappers. If you think about it, cupcake tins would make perfect personal sized meals for little kids. One for the pickier eaters, and two for the normal eaters, and three for big eaters. In a new "app" on my new phone, there is a cooking app that had this delicious lasagna made in won ton wrappers. So...we tried them, and thirty kids ate nearly fifty little lasagnas and everyone wanted more.

Nice things about the won ton wrappers is the cost is nominal and there is no boiling noodles, and they actually cook. That's the trouble with "abc" noodles - already been cooked. Making lasagna for kids should be a "very often" occurrence because it's a great source of protein and there are so many variations.

But now let's think it through...is this the only use won ton wrappers have? Nep.

Think about all the little things children love to eat...macaroni and cheese, chicken pot pie, tacos, hot dogs w/o a bun, ham and cheese w/o bread and so many more combinations.

If you drape two won tons in each of twelve cups of your muffin tin and just start putting your child's favorite foods into them and top with a slice or two of cheese and bake, you're going to have some pretty interesting results.

1. Last night's mashed potatoes, cubed meat, cheese

2. Left over pizza cut up with scissors and topped with cheese

3. Sandwich meat, rice, cheese

4. Rice, veggies, cheese

5. Mac and cheese, sandwich meat and more cheese

6. Fish sticks, french fries cut up with a topping of cheese

7. Hot dogs, baked beans and cheese

8. Left over Chinese with a thick topping of Parmesan

9. Ham, Tuesday's potatoes and a topping of cheese

To make lasagna, brown your meat and add your sauces. Try taco seasoning as your spice. Kids like this better than Italian spices. Mix cottage cheese and Parmesan cheese in a bowl with an egg. Line your cup with won tons and add your meat sauce, your cottage mix and top with mozzarella. Bake at 350.

Can't wait to try this with rice, veggies meat and cheese sauce.

Cheese sauce can be found in the right column of this blog under recipes.

Saturday's Under the Sun - Vacation Tips

From Chicago Healers.

Summer is the time for vacations, whether it’s visiting family or just getting away for a weekend. The only problem: vacations can be expensive, from gas for the car to flights, hotels, and every meal at a restaurant.

Chicago Healers Practitioner Julie Casserly, MBA urges vacationers to “Position yourself to be lucky to spend the amount of money you actually have for a vacation, instead of going into debt and later on having to pay for past choices. No one likes having what I call a ‘spending hangover;’ it takes all the fun out of going on vacation in the first place.”

• Last Minute Deals – In a world where there are so many things to do, most of the travel websites will have last minute trips at a deep discount, particularly in economic environment. Decide a budget and search online for an all-inclusive trip for the long weekend that falls into that number. The exciting part is that you are leaving yourself open to trying a new adventure or a new place.
• Look At The End, First - Decide priorities for a vacation and what amount to spend, and then build a plan out from there.
• Choose the Day – Choose to travel on cheaper air fare days, say Tuesday – Saturday
• Name Your Price – Rent a car, hotel, or airfare through priceline.com where customers can name a price. Sometimes it can be 30% less expensive.
• Pack the Snacks – If a road trip in the works, pack a cooler!!! No need to spend extra money on those high cost, high calorie snacks and fast food meals.
• One Stop Shopping – Buy in bulk; get airfare, hotel, and car from one vendor.
• Locals Know Best – Interact with the locals to learn the best restaurants and tours, where the prices won’t be spiked just for tourists.
• Set the Plan and Open an Account – Plan for future trips: set financial intentions by opening up a separate savings account that is ONLY to be used for vacations. Set a plan for how much to spend each year on vacations and be sure to put aside an appropriate amount per paycheck that will allow for this later in the year.

Casserly explains further saying “It’s all about what free cash you have to be able to afford a vacation and about what is right for you and your family, there is no right or wrong, it’s about what you have chosen as your financial priorities and making sure that you create a positive energy flow from your spending (spending on a cash basis) and not a negative energy flow (spending with debt).”

About ChicagoHealers.com

Chicago Healers (www.ChicagoHealers.com) is the nation’s pioneer prescreened integrative health care network, offering a comprehensive understanding of each practitioner’s services, approach, and philosophy. Our holistic health experts teach and advocate natural and empowered health and life choices through their practices, the media, educational events, and our website. With close to 200 practitioners and over 300 treatment services, Chicago Healers has provided nearly 400 free educational events for Chicagoans and has been featured in 300+ TV news programs and print publications. For more information, visitwww.ChicagoHealers.com.

Fearing the Child by Judy Lyden

A young child assaults mom with a push, a kick and a scream. He or she might even say, "I hate you!" and mom recoils in terror.

"I want it NOW! screams Verucca, and daddy shrinks into a jelly fish.

"Well, little Johnny doesn't much like going to his room; he doesn't like it when we say no; he doesn't care for being in time out." Uhhhhh...yeah...ummm he's not supposed to like it.

Many children rule their perspective roosts. They lay down the rules for mom and and dad and keep them hopping through the hoops as fast as their little feet can hop and Johnny has a bull whip. It's not real; it's a verbal bull whip that has hot feisty tears attached and a scathing reproachful tongue to deliver those words that make some parents shake in fear. Little Johnny, by God, is going to get what little Johnny wants or somebody is going to pay.

And where does this inordinate chaos come from? It comes from the second and third years when mom and dad didn't quite take hold of the child, and because they didn't, the child took hold of them because, you know, someone had to, and it might as well have been little Johnny.

Many parents have no idea how to care for a toddler. Most can handle a baby, but after the first year when the walking begins, childcare all but falls to ruin in many homes. Children aren't the same prisoners of their little bodies, and their minds are developing at such a rate, many inexperienced mothers just can't stay one step ahead of the child.

Toddlers want to run, climb, roll...might as well put them into a room fully padded and say, "Have at it kid." Holding, calming, soothing, talking sweetly to a kid who just wants to run is going to make two people very unhappy. Might as well just kid proof the house, block the stairs, and let the kid run. It won't last forever. And get the child out EVERY day for a couple of hours at least. This running and climbing is natural and it's supposed to be like this.

By age two, a child begins to need a LOT of structure. "No" becomes the vocabulary word of the year. This is the true mommy and me year. It's a head to head all year. The child's brain is working about as fast as a desert absorbing water after a quick rain. Take and show a two year old everything possible. He will not respond at first, but by the end of his two year old year, he will love his closeness with his parents, but the word "NO" is always in the background ready to structure and discipline, and every child needs the "NO" parameter.

This two year old year is the make or break year for the beast child. Children who set the agenda and take the power seat do so in this year. When parents refuse to take the reins - for whatever reason - and instruct a child, the child will lose all respect for the parent and begin to throw tantrums, order the parent around and refuse nearly anything the now disrespected parent tries to do.

Table training, toilet training, talking, dressing, building, listening, and manners are all accomplished in this two year old year. By age three, a child should be ready to learn in a group, and if the the first three years are handled properly by the parent, the child's crossover to the preschool age should be a snap.

Why do parents let the child take the reins? Many parents make toddlers cry by refusing them the physical outlets that the child desires. A toddler has not learned to express himself, so he cries. It's natural, but there are times when a toddler is so angry that he will blood curdling scream, and if the parent gives in once, the toddler has him in the guilty zone, and he's his forever! Or so thinks the toddler. The next conflict the toddler will again curdle his own blood and screech even louder hoping the parent will give in. Every time the parent gives in, the toddler becomes more and more of the boss.

After months of giving in, the parent has lost control and just appeases the toddler until the child is two and adds words to his screeching and says, "I hate you." At this point, the parent is so afraid to make the child unhappy, he runs after the child like Varucca Salt's father in bitter fear that the child really does "hate" the parent.

As the child becomes three, the child with an intelligence is bored with his game and really wants a parent to exchange ideas with, to talk with and to respect. But the history is set in stone, and the child is lost without an adult in his life.

Many children end up rearing themselves.

Getting back the reins is hard. It takes a lot of work, but it's the best work a parent will ever do. Working with a three year old is easier than working with a two year old because a three year old is tired of the game, and has more cognition than the two year old. It's as if the three year old sees more than himself in the hand mirror.

Retrieving the reins means learning to say "NO" and mean it. That means there is no victim and there are no excuses. A parent is supposed to say "NO" and do it sometimes in a loud voice. It's a safety issue. Somebody MUST be in charge, and it really shouldn't be the child. The word "NO" can't be over used to begin with. Tears are tears there are three types of tears, angry- no tears; sad - tears; hurt - tears. When there is noise but no tears, you can pretty much bet that the anger level is mountain high. It's not time for the parent to assume the jelly fish position, it's time for the child to isolate. "Go cry someplace where I can't see or hear you." This usually sends a tyrant into orbit, but it's an orbit that can be spent alone...in the privacy of the tyrant's room. And there can't be a refusal to go because the parent is in charge...remember? Screaming is a weapon. Are you going to let someone attack you with the weapon of choice, or are you going to say, "NO!"

Yesterday on the bus, a six year old was screaming because he didn't get his way. "You're not going to do that because you don't have any reason to do that. You've had a nice day. Quit now or it's your last field trip." Instant silence. Why? Because I have leverage. I have something the child wants, and his good behavior is going to get that while his poor behavior will lose it sure as the sun rises in the morning.

Every parent needs leverage against a tyrant and time alone usually is that leverage. It might take weeks to fight a battle of wills, but come on, do you really care if a "tyrant" is sitting all by him or her self? The more time alone, the more quiet there is in the house and the closer a parent is to taking back the control of the home.

Parents are supposed to be in control of the home, so suit up, grab the "NO" word and wait for the assailant. And remember, allowing a child to be a tyrant through the preschool years will only encourage them to be tyrannical as grade schoolers and then high school comes and the child is no longer manageable by parent, counselor or principal.

Wild and Wonderful World!

Conservationists discover more than 1,000 species in New Guinea

Treasure trove of unknown varieties of animal, bird, fish, insect and plant have been identified in the forests and wetlands of the Pacific island over a period of just 10 years

Wattled Smoky Honeyeater (Melipotes carolae). Photograph: WWF

A new type of tree kangaroo, a 2.5-metre-long river shark, a frog with vampire-like fangs and a turquoise lizard are among hundreds of new creatures found and being documented in a report by conservationists working in the Pacific island of New Guinea.

Some 1,060 previously unknown species of mammals, fish and birds have been spotted in the volcanic island over a 10-year period.

The Final Frontier report, which was put together by WWF as part of its 50th anniversary celebrations, marks a brief respite from the escalating rate of animal and plant extinctions which is taking its toll across the planet and has left a quarter of all known mammals on the endangered list.

The species have all been discovered, at a rate of two each week, in the period from 1998 to 2008 by the various teams and researchers who have visited the region and its extensive forests, waters and wetlands.

One team discovered a new bird, the wattled smoky honeyeater, within seconds of leaving their expedition helicopter.

Perhaps the most extraordinary freshwater discovery is the species of river shark which, given its size, has done well to evade discovery until now. The shy fish has been named the Glyphis garricki after the New Zealand zoologist Jack Garrick, who identified it. Because of its rarity it has immediately gone on to the endangered list.

In the salt waters a snub-fin dolphin that comes in a delicate shade of pink was spotted in 2005 and, after much scientific measuring and debating, now qualifies as the first new dolphin species to be found in more than three decades.

Dr Mark Wright, conservation science adviser at WWF, said the report was a fabulous reminder that "the world is full of fantastic and fantastical creatures, of quirky and improbable lifestyles. The more we look, the more we find".

But he said that species diversity was rich the world over. "Perhaps it is so commonplace we ignore it, or maybe we've forgotten how to look. Let's take flies. Britain is home to more than 5,000 species of fly, and these are not everyone's favourite, but flies represent 5,000 entirely different responses to life's challenges.

"For instance, the holly leaf miner, whose nondescript larvae cause leaf blotching at this time of year – their entire world is limited to that tiny strip between the top and bottom of a single leaf. Those same life processes that we go through – feeding, growing, breathing – are still acted out, but now crammed into a creature far smaller than a grain of rice."

New Guinea is in an area known as the "coral triangle", a region with the most diverse marine eco-systems on Earth. In the 10-year period in question, 33 new fish species have been found in the waters around the island, including the damselfish, a strikingly brilliant blue wrasse and seven species of zig-zag rainbow fish, an 11cm-long creature which lives in shallow waters. In all, 218 new kinds of plants – including a flesh-like orchid, 43 reptiles and 12 mammals, 580 invertebrates, 134 amphibians, two birds and 71 fish have been found.

"It is precisely that endless variety of form and function that enthrals me, but this exuberance of nature is under threat," said Wright. "Despite the best efforts of groups like WWF, it is clear that we will not save all we would like to.

"Forest will continue to be felled, rivers dammed and coastlines developed. And species will be erased. Some extinction is inevitable – a consequence of Darwin's 'natural selection' – but humans are imposing intense pressures, leading to 'unnatural selection'. Nature is struggling to cope, but we have the ability and power in our hands to forge a future in which the environment is truly valued – we must choose to do so."

New Guinea is the second largest island on Earth, after Greenland, and is divided between the countries of Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. It holds the third largest tract of rainforest in the world and is home to around 8% of the world's species.

But while its relatively low level of human population had protected its species, illegal logging is now projected to strip the island of half of its forest cover by 2020.

■ To support WWF's anniversary report, writer and film-maker Stephen Poliakoff has made a short film which will include footage of some of the new species from New Guinea. Called Astonish Me, the film will be shown exclusively online by the Observer later this summer before being shown in Odeon cinemas as a short feature prelude to major films.

Poliakoff said that his drama – which stars Bill Nighy – had been inspired by the new discoveries made in the natural world.

"What astonishes me is there are so many animals out there we are seeing for the first time from the very colossal squid to the largest insect in the world discovered recently – it's extraordinary in the 21st century that this is still going on. We think we know everything, but we don't," he said.

Teaching Tuesday...

We don't know who replied, but there is a beautiful soul working in the dead letter office of the US postal service.

Our 14-year-old dog Abbey died last month. The day after she passed away my 4-year-old daughter Meredith was crying and talking about how much she missed Abbey. She asked if we could write a letter to God so that when Abbey got to heaven, God would recognize her. I told her that I thought we could so, and she dictated these words:
Dear God,
Will you please take care of my dog? She died yesterday and is with you in heaven. I miss her very much. I am happy that you let me have her as my dog even though she got sick.
I hope you will play with her. She likes to swim and play with balls. I am sending a picture of her so when you see her you will know that she is my dog. I really miss her.
Love, Meredith
We put the letter in an envelope with a picture of Abbey and Meredith and addressed it to God/Heaven. We put our return address on it. Then Meredith pasted several stamps on the front of the envelope because she said it would take lots of stamps to get the letter all the way to heaven. That afternoon she dropped it into the letter box at the post office. A few days later, she asked if God had gotten the letter yet. I told her that I thought He had.
Yesterday, there was a package wrapped in gold paper on our front porch addressed, 'To Meredith' in an unfamiliar hand. Meredith opened it. Inside was a book by Mr. Rogers called, 'When a Pet Dies.' Taped to the inside front cover was the letter we had written to God in its opened envelope. On the opposite page was the picture of Abbey & Meredith and this note:
Dear Meredith,
Abbey arrived safely in heaven. Having the picture was a big help and I recognized her right away.
Abbey isn't sick anymore. Her spirit is here with me just like it stays in your heart. Abbey loved being your dog. Since we don't need our bodies in heaven, I don't have any pockets to keep your picture in so I am sending it back to you in this little book for you to keep and have something to remember Abbey by.
Thank you for the beautiful letter and thank your mother for helping you write it and sending it to me. What a wonderful mother you have. I picked her especially for you. I send my blessings every day and remember that I love you very much. By the way, I'm easy to find. I am wherever there is love.
Love,
God

The Selfish Child by Judy Lyden

Last night I watched a movie in which a character called Mary - whose only purpose in life was to gush - mostly about herself - spewed the most unbelievable trivia about her own life. She took up everybody's time with her me, me, me palaver. It was always about Mary. When the man she was interested in introduced her to his new girl friend, the selfishness took a new dimension and poured out of her in an incredible savagery grizzled like a string of shark teeth.

Mary is like a lot of people we know. The selfish, self centered people who always put themselves first, second, third, last and only and never realize how tedious they are.

These people are loathsome and you can write the scenario. You meet someone after a long absence and innocently say, "Hi, Sue! How have you been?" and the response is "Well, I'm...me...I...me...I...me...for five minutes straight with never even a thought about asking about you until you want to run and hide. Even when Sue asks about you, she doesn't really want to hear a response, and when you try to get a foot in the conversational door, they don't hear a world. It's boorishness.

And it has a beginning. It begins with poor parenting at two. Most two year old children are the center of the their own world, and that world is the only world. If they could speak clearly, they would tell you so. The tyrannical two year old, the selfish child, begins to shape his or her personalities with either aggressive behavior or passive aggressive behavior. Stubbornness, refusal, entitlement, self regard all begin at two and it comes from parents who never see the child's behavior as negative simply because they don't see their own behavior which is parallel.

Many parents of selfish children have a high regard for themselves. It's simple, they are better than other people; they are socially a cut above everyone else. In other words, they are snobs. Snobs model a behavior that will become the quest-point of a tyrant.

By three, a child who has taught himself to be stubborn, to refuse direction, who feels entitled to a host of extras and has a self regard that cuts himself off from the next child is headed down a really vacuous life road. Selfish children with an entitlement agenda who rarely give into others have trouble making friends. The desire to either push others around and bully or refuse friendship with a silent moroseness is a big red light to children of a less selfish bend.

Selfish children want not only their turn but everybody else's turn and they can never seem to figure out why they can't have all the turns. Or, similarly, they don't want a turn at all because it would mean "slumming." They may not be able to express themselves to this degree, but it's there and it's taking root.

As the child grows, life tasks are pushed onto others and the "excuse" becomes the golden rule tool. "I tried to help making the bed, but my mother made it over, so I'll never make it again." This statement has nothing to do with mother, and nothing to do with the task being poorly executed. It has to do with the selfish child finding an excuse never to lift her excellent finger to help anyone again. With children, with the less mature, with spoiled selfish people, we hear it all the time.

Envy, jealousy, anger are all attributes of the selfish child. Compassion, sympathy, mercy are not. A selfish child will not care if someone is hurt because they don't care. They want to know how they fit into the equation, what they are going to get, what they are going to have to side step.

When something good happens to Jane, the selfish Jaxine is angry. Most likely, Jaxine will either refuse to acknowledge Jane's success, or say little, or if at all possible, sabotage it. And Jaxine will undoubtedly tell Jane that her success is nothing at all compared to someone else she knows.

This behavior buds in the earliest classroom, playground and playroom play. You hear it all the time. When a child dresses up and looks like a little princess in dress up and gets her picture taken by the teacher, the selfish child will call her names and say, quite unabashedly that the dress is ugly, that the princess is not her friend.

The average child is thrilled with another child's birthday because there is a sharing. It never occurs to him or her that it's not his own birthday. The jealous child, Jaxine, however, is angry that it is not her birthday, and can't even wish her friend happiness. She is angry and lets the day go buy without even so much as a kind word to her friend.

We all know people like this. We all have encountered people who behave like Jaxine.

And the problem with the selfish child is that he or she comes from parents who are just like him or her. Selfishness is bred. It is modeled by the elder for the younger. So fixing it is not going happen at home.

What do non-selfish people do with the selfish child? There is nothing a teacher can do to make a child or anyone else think or feel differently from what is inside that person. The only thing a teacher can do is to not allow the outward, uncaring, non-participatory behavior. By saying no to a child quite as a matter of fact will do more than anything else.

Monday's Tattler

Good Morning!

Another summer week at the Garden School. This week we will try to get three swim days in on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Our long trips are over for the summer, and we will go to Boonville to the lake at Scales on Friday and on August 5, we will have our summer finale at Pounds Hollow Lake in Illinois with a hot dog and hamburger cookout.

It's been a great summer, and the kids have seen so much. It's time to begin to settle down as we near going to school and concentrate on getting as many children swimming as possible. We have six swim days left, and we want to make the most of it.

We would like to thank parents for all your support and care through this incredible summer. We could not have done it without you.

Miss Kara was so excited by the field trips, she has made that part of the Garden School curriculum her own and will be our field trip manager this fall. It looks like we will be doing a lot of travel!

Last week we tie dyed shirts and they turned out surprisingly well. There is one in particular that I am very fond of. I am thinking of changing the uniform shirt from the green ones to the tie dye ones with GS letters on the back. I am also thinking of a particular blue short to wear with the new shirt. Don't worry...the cost is on me. Just noticed at the Science Museum that our shirts are hanging poorly and looking kind of eh...

This week on Thursday, I am trying a new recipe: lasagna cups. It's made with a won ton and you make the lasagna in cup cake tins. Terry suggested that I make this at home first...lol.

Lots in the hopper...of course...we are the Garden School.

Sunday's Plate from the Idaho Potato Commission

Savory Stuffed Idaho® Spuds

Stuffed with fresh vegetables and lean turkey or ham, this delicious dish is a healthy, well-balanced meal packed into an Idaho® potato.

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 4 large Idaho® Potatoes, baked
• 1 1/2 cups fresh broccoli florets
• 1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1/4 cup sliced green onion
• 1/4 cup chopped sweet red pepper
• 1 cup fully-cooked lean turkey or lean ham (optional) diced
• 1/2 cup non-fat plain yogurt
• 1/4 cup skim milk
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard
• 2 teaspoons grated Parmesan cheese
• Dash ground nutmeg

Directions

1. In a 1-quart microwave-safe casserole dish, combine broccoli, mushrooms, green onion, red pepper and 2 teaspoons water. Micro-cook, covered, on HIGH for 3 to 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Drain well.
2. Add the turkey or ham (if desired). Cook, covered, on HIGH 2 to 3 minutes or until heated through.
3. Stir together yogurt, milk, cornstarch, mustard and nutmeg. Add to broccoli mixture. Cook covered on HIGH 2 to 4 minutes or until mixture is thickened, stirring every 30 seconds.
4. Spoon over hot potatoes. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Estimated Nutritional Analysis per Serving:
349 cal, 1 g fat, 26 g protein, 59 g carbohydrate, 49 mg cholesterol, 164 mg sodium

Under Saturday's Sun

Great rooms. Check out Rooms



I love the cheesy loft!

Friday's Tattler

It was a brilliant trip to Mammoth Cave because it was cool all the way down. We had a good lunch and then took the cave tour. We were with 100 people, and our little guys had trouble keeping up. They were turning the lights out behind us as we went, and I think the kids were more intent on running to catch up than on touring. Next time...it's a private school tour. Don't care how much it costs.

The children were very very good on the bus, and I got to thinking that I think they have had enough long bus rides this summer. Next Friday, I think we will be going to Scales Lake and maybe a water park extravaganza if I can set it up.

The ride home was hot and sticky, but the kids were troopers. Gotta love a sleeping child on the bus.

Getting Kids to Read by Judy Lyden

Over the years many people have asked me, "How do I make my child a strong reader?" The answer is simple, "Read."

Children do by example, and they come to love the things that their families love, and reading is one of those things.

Reading, after all, is just another activity not unlike eating or shopping or using grammar patterns or regular life order or behaviors that set an example in the home by the adults who are supposed to be in charge.

Let's get serious: If food must be purchased while sitting in a car; if it comes with a ton of ketchup slung in the bottom of the paper bag, you can bet the green grocer is not our best friend.

When the aftermath of mall shopping allows mom to appear at the school with jello died hair wearing not much more than can be stuffed into a toothbrush holder... you can bet that children will not want to buy their clothes at a place like Land's End.

When parents speak poorly, "He ain't got no...she don't know nothin'...I was wore out...there's fourteen of 'em... children will pick up this patios and set their standard upon the standard that has been set at home. The family is the primary educator of the child.

If a child is allowed to set off fireworks past midnight by parents who think waking the elderly in the neighborhood is a hoot, you can probably expect that the children will come to think nothing of the fragility of the elderly - that that whole faction of the community simply doesn't matter.

If people who regularly inhabit or visit a home are allowed to appear and behave like the people in wanted posters in the post office...well junior is probably going to follow suit and probably won't be class valedictorian simply because apples don't fall far from the tree.

And reading books is right up there with other tastes. "I hate reading," says the strong willed parent, but my kid is going to read." Uhhhhh....no. Children may be forced to read, might even enjoy reading as a child, might even be good at it in grammar school, but apples are not in mathematical arcs flying wildly from the tree; they drop from branches close to the trunk. Parents who hate to read rear children who will also hate to read - most of the time.

The example is set by doing. Parents who turn off the TV and sit for periods of time and read are quietly setting the "reading" example for children. But that reading example, to last, must pack a serious mien. Parents who read junk will encourage children to read junk. Parents who read serious books will encourage children to read for information and for learning, and that ability to learn from what you read will keep people reading.

Now why is this so? Why does it matter what you read as long as you're reading? When people read junk, there is nothing to talk about. A boring mystery novel is just that... boring to talk about. A junk novel is just that...boring. And if there is little or no information to be passed along by reading, "so what," asks the child, "is the point?" Children are keenly aware of their time and the process of reading as being in serious conflict when the reading bug first bites.

Acquiring knowledge and maintaining that knowledge is the key to a love of reading. Adults should be able to talk to their children about what they are reading, and ask their children what the child is reading in an exchange of ideas and of purpose.

Dinner time is an excellent time to do this. Families who sit with their children and discuss the days activities and the books they are reading have the advantage of encouraging reading in the best possible ways. By arranging a dinner, a dinner hour, a table to sit and be open to a lively discussion say, "I care about you as a person, as a reader."

This more than any other thing will move the love of reading from one generation to another.

Wild Wednesday!

By IBTimes Staff Reporter | June 24, 2011 7:01 AM EDT

The Brazilian government has confirmed the existence of about 200 unidentified tribal people in the Amazon rainforest.

Satellite pictures in January revealed this community was living near the border with Peru. A flight expedition over the area in April confirmed that they are about 200 in numbers.

Along with Survival International (Funai), an organization working for tribal people's rights worldwide, Brazilian authorities found that these people are living in three clearings in the Javari Valley in the western Amazon.

According to Fabricio Amorim, who led Funai’s overflight expedition, illegal fishing, hunting, logging, mining, cattle ranching, missionary actions, drug trafficking and oil exploration on the Peru-Brazil border area are the main threats to the well-being of this community and their dwellings.

Brazil follows a policy not to contact these people, instead monitor their land so that they can live without any risk.

The community and its four straw-roofed huts were spotted in the Javari Valley, which is believed to be hiding around 2000 uncontacted tribes in the world.

Survival International has released the first, clear pictures of this ancient Amazonian tribe, who grow crops, peanuts, bananas, corns and more. Have a look:

Tuesday's Teacher - Real Food

From Food Navigator USA

Comment: I've been screaming this from the roof tops for years. Real food vs. processed food. Read on, McDuff!

What’s hot in dairy? From rBST-free to water-buffalo milk

Post a commentBy Elaine Watson, 08-Jun-2011

Related topics: Financial & Industry, Dairy-based ingredients

US consumers are increasingly equating health and wellness in dairy with high-quality, local or more ‘natural’ products rather than low-fat products per se, according to market researchers at The Hartman Group.

In ‘Deep Dive into Dairy’ - the first of a new series of webinars exploring consumer trends in selected food categories – Hartman’s director of culinary insights Melissa Abbott said this is particularly evident in yogurt and spreads.

“Consumers want something less sweet or sweetened with 'real’ sweeteners, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be fat free or low fat anymore.

“Many consumers are looking at consuming higher-quality fats in their diets in moderate proportions. Full-fat yogurt is perceived as higher-quality, more of a real, less-processed food.”

Butter no longer a dietary villain

Meanwhile, butter is “no longer a dietary villain and has become a poster ingredient for the ’eat real food’ campaigns popping up around the US”, claimed Abbott. “Consumers are returning to butter, shunning margarine and spreads and using it alongside olive oil.

“This has been gaining ground from the culinary community but also interestingly from the health and wellness community, particularly pasture or grass-fed butter that provides higher levels of antioxidants, CLA [conjugated linoleic acid] or omega-3 fatty acids.”

Meanwhile “progressive consumers” are also suspicious of yogurt containing non-fat milk powder that is just “there to increase protein levels”, she claimed.

Water buffalo milk. Coming to a shelf near you?

An ‘around the bend trend’ from farmers markets to watch out for is “super-rich milk from water buffalo that is very rich and very decadent”, she predicted, while anything ‘grass-fed” represents “a marker of high quality”.

More artisan-type products are also starting to hit shelves with less sugar, or sweetened with an alternative perceived to be more natural such as agave.

Such products also tend “not to contain stabilizers such as gelatin or pectin”, she added.

Growing demand for thicker, high-quality Greek yogurt has also continued unabated, with consumers offsetting higher costs by eating mainstream products during the week but buying richer products for the weekend, she said.

Hormone-free milk and clarified butter

While raw milk will probably remain on the fringes of the dairy products category, other niche market trends from hormone-free to clarified butter are also starting to influence the mainstream, claimed Abbott.

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“Consumers, including mainstream, are very aware of rBST [recombinant bovine somatotropin], though they cannot articulate exactly what it means and we have found some consumers abandoning organic milk in favor of hormone-free milk, since they say that is what they were buying organic for, to avoid mystery hormones.”

While ‘A2 milk’ is probably something only a handful of consumers might recognize right now, it too has legs, she predicted.

“Consumers, unless they are followers of the Weston Price dietary movement, have no idea about this type of milk. But this is a trend we can expect on the horizon to have some impact on the dairy industry. It relates directly to consumers seeking milk from Guernsey and Jersey cows, but more about the fact that they produce higher quality butterfat, which is at the foundation of A2 milk.

“The medical community, particularly cardiologists, may eventually play a part in shedding light on this type of milk.”

Meanwhile, demand for breed-specific milk, notably that from Jersey or Guernsey cows, will continue, she said.

As for butter, ghee – clarified butter that has been cooked such that all the milk solids have been strained out – is starting to interest more consumers, she said.

“It is traditionally used in Indian cuisine but it is also sought out by health and wellness consumers that dislike synthetic margarines or have a dairy intolerance.”

Cheese gets sophisticated

When it comes to cheese, US consumers are becoming more sophisticated in their tastes, although manufacturers looking to cash in need to “stay approachable and fun” as cheese, much like wine, could be an intimidating category for many shoppers, she stressed.

Functional dairy

As for functional dairy, given consumers’ desire for all things ‘natural’, it is important to avoid anything that appears too medicinal if manufacturers want to avoid alienating consumers, she said.

But there are opportunities for enterprising manufacturers to engage with new consumer groups for ingredients such as whey protein by moving away from muscle-building and focusing instead on more female-friendly messages around weight management, fat loss and body-shaping, she said.

Monday's Tattler

Good morning! It's going to be a hot week!

We will all get organized on Monday for the week. Then on Tuesday, heat permitting, we will go to Newburgh Pool to swim.

On Wednesday, we will go up to the lake at Scales to swim, heat permitting.

Thursday we will try to take in a movie.

Friday we will go to Mammoth Cave for a cave tour.

Lots in the hopper...

Please remember that children do better at school if they go to bed BEFORE 8:00 p.m.

Have a great week, and if you are reading this please tell Miss Judy for a treasure box pass for your child.

Sunday's Plate

Portion size and eating more often largely responsible for obesity: Study

By Caroline Scott-Thomas, 01-Jul-2011 From Food Navigator USA. com

Efforts to reduce obesity should focus on reducing the number of meals and snacks and portion sizes, suggest researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

In a new study published in the online publication PLoS Medicine, the researchers examined US population and dietary data dating back to 1977 to understand the relative contributions of energy density of foods, number of eating occasions, and portion sizes to energy intake over time. They found that average total daily energy intake increased from about 1,803 calories in 1977–78 to 2,374 calories in 2003–06, an increase of 571 calories.

Changes in the energy density of foods slightly decreased over the 30-year period – but the researchers estimated that about 15 calories a day were added due to increased portion sizes between 1977-1978 and 1989-1991, while more eating occasions added 4 calories a day. However, between 1994–98 and 2003–06, more meals and snacks accounted for an extra 39 calories a day, while portion size appeared to level off, leading to a decrease of about 1 calorie a day. Over the 30-year period, the average number of daily eating occasions increased from 3.8 per day to 4.9.

Dr. Barry Popkin, the study’s senior author and professor of nutrition at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health said: “First, the food industry started ‘super sizing’ our portions, then snacking occasions increased and we were convinced we needed to drink constantly to be hydrated. This study shows how this epidemic has crept up on us. The negative changes in diet, activity and obesity continue and are leading to explosions in health-care costs and are leading us to become a less healthy society.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one-third of US adults and 17 percent of US children are obese – and from 1980 to 2008, obesity rates doubled for adults and tripled for children.

Popkin cautioned that under- or over-reporting by study participants of the amount of food they consumed could mean there are inaccuracies in the data.

“Still, these findings suggest that efforts to prevent obesity among adults in the U.S should focus on reducing the number of meals and snacks people consume during the day and reducing portion size as a way to reduce the energy imbalance caused by recent increases in energy intake,” he said.

The full study is available online here .

Saturday's Sun - Eric Carl and the Pottery Barn

The World of Eric Carle and Pottery Barn Kids bring The Very Hungry Caterpillar to your child’s room!

I wanted to contact you to let you know that The World of Eric Carle and Pottery Barn Kids have teamed up to offer a new line of children’s home furnishings and decorative accessories, launching in July.

Inspired by the rich heritage of the classic children’s book, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, The World of Eric Carle bedroom lines embody the joys of playful learning that moms will love introducing to their children, and kids will love incorporating into their rooms.

The World of Eric Carle personifies an appreciation of art and nature that generations have experienced through timeless stories and unique artwork, while Pottery Barn Kids provides products designed to delight and inspire the imagination, making the partnership a natural fit. The new line features products for infants to children, including:

· Fitted crib sheets, bedskirts and bumpers

· The Very Hungry Caterpillar Quilts for boys and girls

· Themed Shams and Sheet Sets

Friday's Tattler

W had a great time at the Science Museum in Nashville. The children were delighted with the ability to be free and just run and play among so many wonderful exhibits. They climbed, they discovered, they experienced a huge building filled with childhood activities and a love of learning.

They were all very well behaved. A little thirsty on the way home, but that's part of travel. Thinking about saving the mini soda containers and refilling with water and freezing for trips home the rest of the summer. If you drink soda, and you buy it in the small bottles, please bring your empties to school with the lids please!

This year our field trips have been super. We have enjoyed everything we have done and we are trying yet one other new trip this year - Kentucky Down Under as our TBA. Can't wait to see this.

Next week is Mammoth Cave, then Kentucky Down Under and then our finale at Pounds Hollow Lake.

Wednesday's Wonder

More delicious portraits by Beve Pietrowsky!

Entrusting a Child by Judy Lyden

Parents entrust children to a school - especially an early childhood school. Parents form a bond with teachers and the director, and if it goes as it should go, the time a child spends at school will be a productive time, a learning time, a time when independence and a sense of self emerges to help the child do well all his life at whatever he tries.

Every summer I am doubly annoyed by the intrusive and trespassing third party who inches it's way into the covenant of parent and teacher. Every summer, a parent at a public facility - usually the pool - will do one of three things: scream at one of our teachers for disciplining a child; try to grab a child from the school and carry him or her off to sooth some problem; or simply fight with a teacher about the "proper way" to care for a child.

No child likes to be scolded about poor public behavior, but I can guarantee any parent that a child will be scolded if they do dangerous or self indulgent things. If a child pushes another child under the water, the pusher will be scolded and sat out along the side of the pool for a period of time. If a child invades a family's space and takes toys not belonging to the Garden School, they will be told to return the toys and leave the family alone. If a child tries to leave the pool area where he belongs, he is done swimming for the day. These are "have to be" rules for the sake of the community of swimmers.

But no matter how much a child is warned, told, instructed, there are those who will test the waters right up to the pool's edge. And parents know that we are tough, strict, and stick to our guns and because we do, we are able to do remarkable things with remarkable behavior.

But at the same time, those big and public "NOs" often make a stubborn child weep. There won't be any tears because the child is neither frightened nor hurt; the child is angry and the most you will get is noise in a great big way, so wailing, sniveling and piercing shrieks are often the issue.

This is where the trespassing do gooder begins to annoy me. "Why is that child crying?" demands a middle aged woman as she leaves her own charges to do anything they want like go too deep in the water or disappear.

"None of your business" is the correct answer. Most teachers will tell Mrs. Buttinsky that the child is fine just angry from breaking the rules.

"Well, she's been crying for a very long time."

"That's because she's not getting her way."

"Well, I think it's a disgrace to have a child who is crying."

"I'm sorry that you are disgraced by discipline."

At this point Mrs. Buttinsky, huffing like a race-tiger, dashes to the child, swoops her into strange arms and proceeds to take the child away from the group.

What's wrong with this scenario?

Good Samaritan? Nasty teacher? Bad communication?

What is wrong with this scenario is kidnapping. Mrs. Buttinsky is stepping over the limits of parent teacher covenant and attempting something that will only be viewed as a kidnapping attempt. The child was not hurt; the child was disciplined. The child yelps were not a product of calling for help, but for attention to be paid. When the police are called, and they have been called when Mrs. Buttinsky has jumped the limit, the police are always on the side of the care provider simply because of the covenant created at the free will of both the parent and the teacher.

Strangers are strangers and have no business usurping the agreement parents have with a teacher. Strangers also have no business touching a child who is not in their company. Adults in the public have no business undermining the care between a teacher and a child.

Children are often poorly behaved. It's the nature of children. They are not yet reasonable, and sometimes they do the wrong thing. But in order to teach, in order to make an impression, a scolding and a period of thinking it through is the only really fair option to give a child who needs that time to remember the rules.

Mrs. Buttinsky can only ruin that child's learning time and squash a teacher's resolve to teach the child.

Tuesday's Teacher

From Education Week

Published Online: June 6, 2011

Published in Print: June 8, 2011, as Word-Learning Study Finds Sudden Insights Trump Flash Cards

Study Finds Sudden Insights Key to Learning Words

By Sarah D. Sparks

Comment: Interesting stuff...

Parents and teachers often use flashcards and picture books to teach young children new words, but a new study suggests that understanding basic words may come from a flash of initial insight more than repetition.

“What we know is children are getting a lot of input from their world, and they are teasing out what information is useful or not useful,” said Janice H. Im, the interim chief program officer for the Washington-based nonprofit Zero to Three: the National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families. “If language experiences are not rich, then where is your interest to retain them?”

The study’s findings suggest that children—and, in fact, all new language learners—can build up concrete vocabulary from interacting with a complex learning environment, not just repeated exposure to words in isolation.

In a study published in the May issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University conducted a series of four experiments on how adults and preschool children learn the meaning of unfamiliar words. The researchers focused on so-called “seed words,” basic nouns that form the foundation for text comprehension.

Repetition vs. Insight

Many language-development researchers believe children learn a new word gradually, taking a general meaning from encountering it multiple times in various contexts and gradually arriving at a more specific meaning. By contrast, the researchers for the new study argue that people instead make a best guess about a new word’s meaning based on the context in which they initially encounter it, and hold onto the meaning unless it is clearly found to be wrong.

“Where people were learning gradually, they were learning the wrong thing. They got more and more abstract descriptions in order to cover all the examples,” said Lila R. Gleitman, a study co-author and a psychology professor at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. “But little children don’t learn that way at all; they learn concrete before the abstract; they learn doll before they learn toy.”

Those learning a new language at any age tend to follow that same early process, she said. In three experiments, including 37 adults and a replication study with a dozen 3- to 5-year-olds, participants watched short video scenes of a mother talking to her toddler in natural environments, like a playroom or a kitchen. The videos were muted to replicate the experience of someone at the very start of language learning, with a single word replaced by either a beep or a nonsense word, to evoke the experience of hearing a new word for the first time. Participants were asked to identify the meaning of the target word from context, which varied from one scene to the next. For a target word meaning “horse,” for example, the “parent” in the film might point to a toy horse and name it directly, or refer to it by saying, “Let’s see the horses today.”

For 90 percent of the scenes, no more than 30 percent of participants accurately identified the word. Of the 7 percent of scenes in which a majority of participants identified the mystery word, all of them were for concrete nouns naming basic groups of objects, such as “ball” and “horse,” which often are among the first gained in a child’s vocabulary. The scenes in which a majority of participants identified the mystery word were considered “highly informative.”

Children mirrored the identification pattern of the adults; they identified the target word in 53 percent of the “highly informative” scenes using common nouns, compared with only 22 percent of the other scenes.

Next, the researchers allowed the participants to try to identify a dozen new mystery words by viewing five scenes for each word; each scene used the word in a different context and across different word orders. If a child learns basic words through association, statistically comparing possible meanings over time, the researchers expected all the participants to improve steadily in their ability to guess the mystery words.

That’s not what happened. Instead, participants seemed to make a best initial guess at what the word meant and changed their minds only if the meaning was clearly wrong in a later scene. If they had a highly informative scene early on, 66 percent were able to identify the target word correctly, but their accuracy decreased, rather than increased, after watching the five scenes. Participants who saw the more-informative scenes later in the lineup were less likely to correct earlier misconceptions of the words.

Penn’s Ms. Gleitman suggested that people may mentally disregard examples that don’t fit a preconceived idea of a word’s meaning. “How can you avoid going abstract? Only by forgetting what you learned before,” she said. “What you remember is your guess, your one guess. It’s the failure of memory that’s rescuing the learning procedure—because you don’t remember the things that are wrong. It’s paradoxical, but that’s what seems to be happening.”

Moreover, she said, that could explain why educators do not see young children make large numbers of mistakes about the definitions of their first words, even during the first five years when they learn 5,000 to 6,000 words.

Ms. Im of Zero to Three said she has seen similar behavior with children she has worked with as well as her own daughter; children understand the meaning of a specific noun like “ball” before the more abstract “object.” “Why we call something ‘furniture’ or‘chair’ is really arbitrary,” Ms. Im said. “When children see that, they are able to grasp not only the meaning of a word but how it is used in a particular context.”

Fast-Mapping

Bob McMurray, an assistant psychology professor and the director of the Mechanisms of Audio-visual Categorization Lab at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, argues that both the “first, best guess” model known as fast-mapping and associative learning are likely at play in early language development. In a 2008 study published in Infancy, the journal of the International Society on Infant Studies, University of Iowa researchers showed 16 2-year-olds two familiar toys shaped like a car and a duck, and one new toy. When the toddlers were told, “Get the blicket!” more than 80 percent were able to retrieve the new toy and remember its name. However, after a five-minute delay, the children were not able to name the new object in a group of unfamiliar toys. “This research has demonstrated that learning does occur during a fast-mapping trial; however, the amount of learning from a single fast-mapping trial is insufficient to support full-blown word learning,” Mr. McMurray wrote in an essay on the project.

Yet Ms. Gleitman’s research may help explain the results of Deb Roy’s Human Speechome Project at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Mr. Roy recorded and mapped more than 230,000 hours of video in his son’s first three years. Mr. Roy, now the chief executive officer of Bluefin Labs in Cambridge, Mass., found his son’s first words were associated with “hot spots” in the home where the words often were used by adults, such as “water” in the kitchen.

Monday's Tattler

Good Morning and welcome to another great summer week at the Garden School. We will be staying in today - too hot to go out for very long. Then on Tuesday, we will be going to the pool at Newburgh. Wednesday, we will be going to the lake at Scales, and then on Thursday, we will be taking a rest period. On Friday, we ill be going to the Science Museum in Nashville and leaving at 8:00 a.m., so be at school by 7:30.

Lots to do...lots to do.

We will have a summer hot dog fest today, and on Thursday we will barbecue some pork steaks.

Please think about buying a duckie from Good Will Industries this week. You could win a million dollars and the profits go to the homeless.

Have a great week!

Sunday's Plate

From Food Navigator USA

Is healthy food more expensive than junk food?

By Elaine Watson, 29-Jun-2011

Comment: I find just the opposite. I find fresh and higher quality if bought in smaller quantities to be cheaper than junk food.

New research into food prices shows that unhealthy options are not always more affordable, although the relative cheapness of soft drinks, refined grains and starchy veg vs healthier alternatives means Americans “may have an economic incentive to consume a less healthful diet”.

The research by Jessica Todd, Ephraim Leibtag and Corttney Penberthy for the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) also highlighted “considerable geographic variation in the relative price of healthy foods” which the authors conclude “may contribute to geographic variation in diet and health outcomes”.

Using prices from USDA’s Quarterly Food-at-Home Price Database, the authors compared prices per 100g of the following foods:

• Packaged whole-grain products vs refined grain counterparts (whole grains were 23-60 percent more expensive)
• Dark green veg vs starchy veg/potatoes (dark green veg was 20-80 percent more expensive)
• Low-fat milk vs carbonated soft drinks (carbonated drinks were cheaper)
• Fruit juice vs non-carbonated, non-alcoholic caloric beverages/fruit drinks (still fruit drinks were cheaper)
• Orange veg (carrots, sweet potatoes) vs starchy veg (orange veg was the same price or cheaper)
• Whole fruits vs processed sweet snacks (fruit was 60-70 percent cheaper)
• Low-fat milk (skim and 1percent milk) with whole or 2 percent milk, (low-fat milk was 10-20 percent cheaper)
• Bottled water vs carbonated soft drinks (bottled water was 6-33 percent cheaper, except in New York)

They note: “The geographic variation in the relative price of the healthier option is large—ranging from 10 to 50 percent higher or lower than the price of the less healthy option - depending on the market area. These variations may have more of an effect on low-income households."

However, the price of some healthier foods had come down in relative terms, they added. “In recent years, the price of whole grains has declined relative to refined grains, which should make it easier for Americans to meet recommended intakes of whole grains.”

Empty calories?

Marion Nestle, professor in the department of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University, said low prices coupled with hefty marketing budgets made sugary soft drinks very appealing, even if bottled water was generally cheaper.

“People like sweet drinks and soda companies spend billions every year to convince them that their products are what people should be drinking. Few people realize the calories in sodas or how many more calories they are taking in than they need.

“I live in New York, which apparently is the one area of the country where soft drinks are cheaper than bottled water, but I’ve seen soda promotions throughout the country where sodas are priced below water.”

She added: “Low-income people are constantly complaining that fresh produce is too expensive, which indeed it is. This is a matter of national policy, which supports the price of commodity crops (corn, soybeans, sugar beets) but ignores what USDA calls ‘specialty crops’.”

If we want Americans to follow national dietary guidelines, concluded Nestle, "we have to make it easier for them to do so, and that means price incentives.”

Low-cost, nutrient-poor, energy dense foods

Adam Drewnowski, director of the Center for Obesity Research at the University of Washington, Seattle, welcomed the research: “I am glad that they started looking at the cost of healthful foods relative to less healthy ones. Of course, cost is only one factor affecting food purchases, even though it has been understudied in the US.

“There are also such things as taste, convenience, variety and health.”

Drewnowski, who has conducted his own extensive research in this field, had a paper published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition last year, which concluded that grains and sugary food groups were cheaper than vegetables and fruit per calorie and were cheaper than fruit per serving.

“These price differentials may help to explain why low-cost, energy-dense foods that are nutrient poor are associated with lower education and incomes.”

Saturday's Secret: The Family Vacationist!

Everyone agrees that the national parks system is a treasury of great escapes from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. But with the National Park Service overseeing 393 national parks as well as thousands of monuments, museums, historical sites and more, we wanted to help you narrow down your choices.

The Family Travel Forum community has selected 10 that represent some of the best sightseeing, recreation, nature trails, geology, historical landmarks, fishing spots, biking trails and value lodging to appeal to travelers with children of any age. Grab the kids and start planning a trip to some of the best destinations in the U.S.

1. Great Smoky Mountain National Park—Situated in eastern Tennessee, the Great Smoky Mountains attract more visitors than any other National Park in America. The park is free to enter and is surrounded by family fun in nearby gateway towns such as Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge.

2. Grand Canyon National Park— America's second most popular National Park, the biggest and deepest canyon is great for looking, hiking and river-rafting down the Colorado River. After visiting the South Rim, head west where the daring can walk a 4,000-foot glass bridge over the canyon walls.

3. Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks—Part of the Grand Staircase on the Colorado Plateau, both Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks carve their way across southern Utah. These two distinctive geologic wonders offer families great hiking trails, bicycling paths and road trips lookouts.

4. Glacier National Park—Just as the name implies, this Montana National Park has 25 active glaciers to see and explore. At one time there were up to 150 glaciers in the area, but most are now lakes that provide great boating, fishing and scenic hiking opportunities at this snow-capped gem.

5. Yellowstone National Park—Perhaps most well known for its geyser, Old Faithful, huge Yellowstone is great for exploring by road, bike or foot. With guided and self-guided tours, a live-in educational center, and an LEED certified visitor’s center, either the Montana or Wyoming entrances lead to special family adventures.

6. Mesa Verde National Park—This archeologically and geologically magnificent park is perfect for families wanting to explore ancient Native American cultures and natural sites. Located in Colorado, it's an easily accessible place to visit ancient Pueblo cliff dwellings, conquer hiking trails, try whitewater rapids or hop aboard railroad tours.

7. Yosemite National Park—Combining natural beauty with cultural history, Yosemite has a little bit of everything. From hiking through groves of Giant Sequoias and kayaking past waterfalls to exploring Native American and Pioneer history, this northern California park is packed with fun recreation possibilities for the active family.

8. Denali National Park—Discovered over a century ago, this Alaskan National Park drew the likes intrepid explorers -- miners, gold-diggers and mountaineers -- early on. Today, Denali offers families a wide range of nature activities, as well as a depot along the Alaska Railroad that transports visitors overland to other destinations in the state.

9. Rocky Mountains National Park—This expansive park in northern Colorado is home to a wide range of wildlife including large populations of elk, bighorn sheep and over 280 species of birds. Families base themselves in many gateway towns to enjoy seasonal outdoor and recreational activities year-round in the dry, mild climate of the Rocky Mountains.

10. Glacier Bay National Park-- Although this National Park can only be reached by sea or air, Glacier Bay is a must-see marine park near Gustavus, Alaska. Perfect for kayaking and whale watching, the ice-lined bay is a scenic destination for family adventurers or a magnificent cruise itinerary for less active, multi-generational trips.

Wherever you're off to, safe there, safe home,
Fran & Kyle [deals@familytravelforum.com]

Responsibility by Judy Lyden

If the word "responsibility" can be defined in regards to the project of caring for children outside the home, I believe one would say, "Responsibility is the ability to see the larger picture, understand all the human dynamics, and then enter into the play making a difference for the better."

On June 17, our staff of five took forty-eight children and seventeen adults on a twelve hour field trip to an aquarium two cities and two states east of our own. It's a huge responsibility to endeavor even to plan such a feat of human engineering, but to make the trip successful and know the children will have a great time takes super commitment. So when I started thinking about this field trip in regards to the project of our care for the children who come to us, I had to examine the larger picture, all the human dynamics, and the entering into the play...

Here are the steps to making a trip like this possible:

Making a decision on whether it can be done with such a large group of very young children (3-12) means understanding the larger picture of early child care. Children should be able to do these things - go by bus to another city to see something wonderful. They should have the discipline and the interest to see something as breathtaking as the Newport Aquarium and remember it. They should be able to separate long enough to do this. They should have the deportment to behave well enough to enjoy this.

And I knew the trip would never come about by simply thinking about it. It's easy to say, "Oh, let's take the kids..." and name a destination and then step out of the play to wait for someone else to take the initiative and do all the work. It's no different in families when one of the spouses casually initiates a vacation, and then drops the ball waiting for the other to do all the legwork, the calls, the reservations, the finances etc. And it's not a power play; it's a quiet commitment of time, talent and treasure to a larger purpose - educating children.

So taking the job on the dreary and ponderous work of time schedules, time zones in this case, places to stop, and reservations means putting "me" away for a short time as a test of human dynamics. How early can we leave; how late can we return; who is going to want to come along; will parents like this for their children; how is lunch going to fit into this; where we will toilet; and how many reservations do I need and when? Questions, questions, questions, and each one needing an answer NOW!

Once these things are organized, it's time to make the plan public and get the faculty and parents excited about it. Once again, having the big picture and understanding the human dynamics come into play. Will parents think their children are too young? Will teachers want to do this work? Will this be too long for some kids? Announcements help and direct and forthright talking to parents helps re-set a questionable stage.

On the day of the trip, the responsibility of faculty to be on time, to be well rested and in a child friendly mood in order to do the work each has promised to do is crucial to the success of the trip. Responsible people will enter the game on time, will fulfill the responsibilities that hold their name, and will make a difference and not just be along for the ride.

Making absolutes is a gigantic part of understanding all the human dynamics:

"We are leaving at 7:00 a.m., and we will leave without anyone who is not there."
"You may not come without your reservation form and fee."
"You may not come without your field trip shirt, your green card filled in, shorts and your socks and shoes."
"Your child must be picked up on time after the field trip."
"Your child must keep track of his own belongings."
"Children must toilet on all group occasions because we are not stopping the bus."

How will parents cope with the absolutes? Who will take the responsibility of turning families away from a school trip who simply will not assume their part of the responsibilities? Late? Half dressed? No forms?

Can faculty be expected to keep track of thirty- six green shirts, four blue, one pink, six white and one flag shirt because parents couldn't find...didn't know...didn't think...? And what about the faculty member who says it's OK that parents couldn't find, didn't know, didn't think? That's more than an oops. That's more than mutiny; that's a punishing disregard for everyone present and a total lack of responsibility.

It is a fact that when a child is accompanied by his parent on a field trip, his or her behavior drops to the lowest level of his human history. Tears, tantrums, dirty tricks, refusal of cooperation, special consideration, special rules all apply to kids with parents. But at the same time, if parents want to spend this holiday day with their children, that's a good thing, right? Knowing that children will behave poorly or at least differently than if the parent was not there is understanding the dynamics. Knowing when to step in is the hard part. When parents give into all the tricks children are able to juggle at one time, trips can become nightmares for parents who don't want to "spoil" it with discipline. Yet children couldn't care less that they have spoiled the trip for themselves, the parent and everyone around them.

This is when good teachers should step in. Head count lines are for everyone; even Mr. and Miss Spoilo. Bathroom times are for everyone too. Lunch lines are for children only. Parents have their own line. These headcount, toilet and lunch lines are probably a good times to separate parents from children, and understanding that and understanding how to do that is a "responsibility" of good childcare.

Keeping order, keeping the schedule, making sure everyone is accounted for, fed, watered, and toileted is all in a days work for someone holding responsibility by the throat. When staff and parents cooperate, children will too, and the day rolls by without a glitch.

Doing the big trips, pulling it all together, working out the details, and doing the job at hand is what makes a good place for kids better. It's a matter of seeing that huge picture of experience and discovery, understanding who is going to do what to whom, why and how, and still stepping into the play with an even hand and a smile. It's about kids...