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COLUMN OF THE WEEK
Meeting Up with Shaun White at Skateboard Camp in the Cayman Islands
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Tribune Media Services Amazing. It’s vacation and the teens are awake and ready to roll before 8 a.m.! That’s what happens on those rare occasions when they love the itinerary you’ve planned. Avid skateboarders 12-year-old Max Weinberg, my cousin, and his 13-year-old buddy, Miles Singer, are not only heading to the world’s second-largest skateboard park—Black Pearl in the Cayman Islands (http://www.blackpearl.ky)—but they’re going to get tips from the pros, including professional skateboarder and champion snowboarder Shaun White, instantly recognizable his long mane of curly red hair. The 22-year-old White has come down to Grand Cayman, his parents and sister in tow, to inaugurate Skate Cayman (www.skatecayman.com) an 11-week summer program through which top pro skateboarders, including Bucky Lasek, Greg Lutzka, Brian Sumner and Chris Cole, will offer kids tips and demonstrations. More "Meeting Up with Shaun White at Skateboard Camp in the Cayman Islands" »Sunday, June 21, 2009
Tribune Media Services I never figured on the rain. The idea was to introduce the kids to the backcountry without all the work that backpacking entails. We planned to hike to a backcountry New Hampshire hut operated by the Appalachian Mountain Club (www.outdoors.org) where, rather than lug our tents and food, we’d each get a cot and a meal. It poured the entire way, of course. We slipped and slid over the rocks on the muddy trail and arrived soaked, but laughing. Years later, my kids still talk about that trip. Two of the three have grown into accomplished backpackers. My older daughter, Reggie, has spent several summers leading teens on wilderness trips. More "TAKING THE KIDS CAMPING" »Sunday, June 14, 2009
Tribune Media Services The goofy underwater shots of my husband and much-younger son grinning behind their masks always make me smile—just the way a vacation photo should. We were in the British Virgin Islands where the two had just completed the requirements to become certified scuba divers. In the years since, they’ve dived different places together and separately. But that photo—framed in our family room—reminds me of what vacations with the kids should be—an exploration of new places and a time to share experiences together.
And this summer, whether you want to learn to dive with your tween or snorkel with your kindergartner, teach your grade-schooler to sail or fly on a trapeze, you’ll find plenty of opportunities at Caribbean resorts—at prices that are surprisingly affordable.
Sunday, June 07, 2009
Tribune Media Services The kids don’t know what to do first. Should they make a puzzle, cutting the pieces on the old-fashioned puzzle machine? Create art with melted crayons in the “glow in the dark” room, build a one-of-a-kind hat or a 3-D dinosaur or “publish” a book?
Kansas City is one place where they can do all of that and more—and it won’t cost parents a penny. That’s because Kansas City’s Kaleidoscope in Crown Center (www.hallmarkkaleidoscope.com) is totally free, thanks to Hallmark. Kids use art supplies and recycled materials—long rolls of shiny gold ribbon, every color of marker, colored paper that’s cut into hearts and circles and squares, curly ribbon, bright fabric, plastic tubs and cardboard tubes—to create their own art in a fanciful space. (Check out the family workshops!) Some 140,000 children visited Kaleidoscope last year.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Tribune Media Services Got the M&Ms? Wherever we hike in the mountains, a little chocolate therapy does wonders when the kids are tired and the adults are cranky. Hand out a sweet treat and those vistas—fields of wildflowers, craggy peaks—are guaranteed to seem that much more spectacular whether you are on foot, mountain bikes or riding a ski resort chair lift. More "TO SKI COUNTRY IN THE SUMMER" »Sunday, May 24, 2009
Tribune Media Services Another day, another castle. But no one’s complaining. Not in Prague, which many now call The Paris of the East. It’s crowded with tourists on this brilliant summer day. More "TO PRAGUE" »Sunday, May 17, 2009
Tribune Media Services The visiting kids are shy about meeting the Arizona locals until Lance, Bailey and Sonora start showing off their tricks, wowing their young guests. Meet Lance the Hawk, Bailey the turkey vulture and Sonora, a 2-year-old bald eagle—all injured and nursed back to health by Liberty Wildlife (www.libertywildlife.org), which in the last 25 years has rehabilitated more than 50,000 wild animals. What’s even more amazing than seeing these creatures strut their stuff “up close,” as the kids say, is where we are seeing them—in a free show on the lawn at the Hyatt Regency Scottsdale Resort at Gainey Ranch (www.hyatt.com). More "CHECKING OUT 21ST-CENTURY RESORT KIDS’ PROGRAMS" »Sunday, May 10, 2009
Tribune Media Services Ready to party? Birthday, anniversary, wedding, good report card, Mother’s Day, being back home safe after a military deployment ... whatever you want to celebrate on your next vacation, you’ll not only get feted like a VIP but also save some significant bucks. More "LET’S CELEBRATE!" »Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Tribune Media Services Let’s all take a deep breath. Sure the swine flu news is making us nervous—very nervous—just when millions of us are planning our much-needed summer vacations. But that doesn’t mean we should grab the kids and huddle under the covers. We just have to plan—and travel—smart. So far outbreaks have been reported in New York, California, Kansas, Ohio, Texas, Canada and even New Zealand with the first U.S. death reported Wednesday. The World Health Organization, which has upgraded the influenza alert level, says that given the widespread presence of the virus, current focus should be on “mitigation measures” and urges those who are ill to delay international travel and for those developing symptoms after an international trip to seek medical attention. More "STAYING HEALTHY RIGHT NOW AWAY FROM HOME" »Sunday, April 26, 2009
Tribune Media Services It’s that rare vacation moment when everyone is happy at the same time. And all it took was an old-fashioned train in a remote Arizona town and a singing cowboy leading the kids in a spirited rendition of “Old MacDonald Had a Farm.” “Our kids have never been on a train before,” said Mary Macho, visiting from Eden Prairie, Minn., with her husband, 10-year-old twins and 8-year-old. “This is a new adventure for all of us.”
“And this is a lot better than me having to drive!” adds her husband Dennis.
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