Entries from May 1, 2008 - June 1, 2008
Vacationing With Kids
christi
in free, out of town, weekends, restaurants, websites, iowa places, kid fun, spring break, travel, to do in des moines
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Sharing Photos Online and In The Real World
It’s super simple if you have a free Flickr account* and a Yahoo! ID (which is also free).
Flickr also has links to all kinds of cool tools for making calendars and postcards and things, too. You can also blog photos to a Flickr blog or an outside free service like Blogger. Perfect for new baby, wedding and vacation posting.
Another tool I love is my Mac’s ability to snap online page captures (Apple+Shift+3) and its even better power to do drag & capture snapshots (Apple+Shift+4) of things I want to share with my friends. I grab ‘em and drag them into emails and voila!
If you don’t have a Mac or if you’d like to do even more with your screen captures, check out the super cool Skitch. Watch their intro video and you’ll be hooked. Also a great blogging tool, you can access your iPhotos (Mac) and re-size, crop, etc. with little effort. Kids love it, too!
Before I go, don’t forget online printing services for help getting photos into Grandpa’s hands. I send mine to Walgreens or Target, pay for them, and let my parents pick the photos up locally. Saves a lot on postage, time and piles of yet unsent photos. Flickr’s also good for this. Relatives, classmates, and friends can choose what to print themselves either at home or through a service.
* Or $24.95/yr for a pro account that lets you have unlimited uploads.
christi
in art, gifts, make, crafts, diy, websites, kid fun, photography, play dates, rainy day fun
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Iowa Summer Fun
DeJusto Family Album - an unregrettable waste of company time
The Des Moines Register has a few fun tools to help you plan this weekend and the rest of your Iowa summer. I thought I’d link out here to save you looking around on their crazy, busy, sometimes seizure-inducing site. (Seriously. What is up with website design in this state? They should have the Smash guys do one for them, instead.)
Vacation Iowa 2008 - Map with interactive links to activities, festivals and events. Add your own ideas, if you please.
christi
in free, out of town, weekends, iowa places, kid fun, holidays, to do in des moines, summer
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Summer Memberships Can Save Your Sanity
Joey Harrison - Summer 1967
Most parents are cool and signed their kids up for t-ball and soccer before it was too late. Not me. I’m oblivious to the world of kids sports (didn’t summer start later in the 70’s?) and once again, I’m facing a summer of leisure. Sounds great, but even having nothing to do can get on your nerves eventually (or at the exact moment your child whines about it for the 1,854th time.) Having a summer membership to something is a great way to fill up some time. Some memberships, like the zoo, transfer over to other states making a detour to the St. Louis Zoo a distinct possibility. PS. Chicago’s Lincoln Park Zoo is free and within walking distance of downtown. Don’t forget it.
Blank Park Zoo - if you have a baby, this is a great place to go walking. Doesn’t open early enough, in my opinion, but it’s relaxing and challenging all at the same time. Also - BPZ has summer camps. Look ‘em up, ‘cause they fill up fast.
SCI of Iowa - Camps here, too, but once again, get on it!
Des Public Pools - If you can’t get a pass, think about splitting some of your time between the free wading pools and going to the pool after five for 1/2-price admission. You have adjust your dinner time, but it’s well worth it. I suggest eating early because a late swim makes kids tired (yeah!)
Clive Aquatic Center - beautiful facilities, but be warned, in terms of crowds this place can become a mini Adventureland.
West Des Moines Parks & Rec - I didn’t find any pool pass info, but I sent them a note and I’ll update this when I hear back.
Ankeny Aquatic Center
Indianola Veterns Memorial Aquatic Center - Altho I’ve never been, I’m of the mindset that this is the hidden gem in area swimming. They always seem to have cool programs and discounts going on. Yeah, you have to drive to Indianola, but I think it’s really nice there.
Places With Activities/Programs
Des Moines Park & Rec
West Des Moines Parks & Rec
Clive Park & Rec - Extra Kudos to Clive, Ankeny & Indianola for having the most user-friendly P&R sites around. Also, I love that their brochures are available for online download as pdf files. Awesome!
Ankeny Park & Rec
Indianola Parks & Rec
Bento for the Rest of Us
Back awhile ago, I wrote about cool bento boxes. I had every intention of packing like that for my son someday, but the reality is that I probably won’t. That’s why I was so happy to find Coffee & Vanilla’s non-intimidating bento lunchboxes. Using silicon cupcake holders and small food containers is a much easier approach to creating bentos and an idea I can probably even see to fruition - why set myself up to fail? Good info on cute/useful gear and recipes, too. Now if I can only find those Bart Simpson cookies…
PS. Lunch In A Box is another great resource whether you’re trying out for the Bento Olympics or just like the idea of fun lunch.
Birdies For Charity
I received an email from The Playhouse this morning asking for my pledge during The Principal Charity Classic’s Birdies for Charity fundraiser. I think this is great idea and plan to not only pledge to The Playhouse (for all the great ways they enhance our community and the lives of kids), but wil also choose a couple more to support. If you have a mommy group, back porch group or play group, perhaps each of you (or your children) can pledge even the minimum pledge of $.02/birdie per mommy in support of The Playhouse or one of the many other Children’s Charities. You can do the whole thing online, so it’s easy peasy.
“Last year, The Principal Charity Classic donated $575,000 in proceeds to area children’s charities. The tournament is committed to increasing support this year for Central Iowa children’s charities, and we’re inviting you to take part.
“Thank you for considering this fun way to support the work we do to change children’s lives through our Kate Goldman Children’s Theatre and Education programs.
“To learn more about Birdies for Charity®, and to pledge your support to The Des Moines Playhouse, visit www.principalcharityclassic.com/pcc-birdies.php. Then get ready to count the birdies at the Classic!”
Thank you,
Des Moines Playhouse Managing Director/Director of Development