Have you noticed? Terrariums are everywhere these days. Housed in beautiful glass vessels--from modern, streamlined vases to old-fashioned, oversized mason jars--they become whimsical home decor. And, they're also a living science project you can create with your children. In honor of International Dinosaur Month, you may get inspired, as we were, by this prehistoric version of a terrarium, complements of yellow brick home.
We are honored to accept the Anaheim Chamber's 2011 Family Owned Business Award and would like to congratulate all of the other winners! We'd also like to recognize the Jackson family for their unwavering dedication to making Fairmont a phenomenal school and a second family for so many students, parents, teachers and administrators for the past 58 years.
Parent Teacher Conferences are around the corner on Friday, October 21. Look for correspondence from your child's teacher with your exact time slot and make note that there is no school on that day. Make the most of your Parent Teacher Conference with these helpful tips.
Red Ribbon Week Red Ribbon Week will be celebrated at the Mable Campus next week and at the Anaheim Hills and Edgewood Campus the following week (10/24-10/28). Each campus recognizes this week with its own unique activities, so check your campus e-newsletter below for more details.
Halloween Festivities Halloween is just around the corner, and each campus has a few tricks and treats up its sleeve to help families get in the spooky spirit! At Edgewood, you can stock up on candy at the ECPA Halloween Fundraiser and you won't want to miss the annual costume parade on Monday, October 31 at 1:15pm. Mable's annual Halloween Haunt on Friday, October 28 is sure to be a screaming good time, and 1st-2nd grade students will show off their Halloween fashions in a parade on Monday, October 31 at 10am. Purchase a Boo Gram for your little one at Citron, and don't forget to donate to Operation Candy by Thursday, November 3. Halloween Parades and Mr. Scott's PE Halloween Extravaganza will get the Anaheim Hills campus in the spirit on Monday, October 31.
'Tis the season for all-things-pumpkin! From pumpkin pie to jack-o-lanterns to roasted pumpkin seeds to pumpkin spice lattes--pumpkins are the quintessential fall ingredient. Celebrate fall with a family trip to one of these great local pumpkin patches. You're guaranteed to find the perfect pumpkin, and make some lasting memories too.
Tanaka Farms is conveniently located in Irvine and offers a U-Pick Pumpkin Patch open daily through October 31st from 9am to 6pm. Admission and parking are free. In addition to a vast selection of pumpkins and fresh vegetables, there are wagon rides, a petting zoo, and a corn maze. Enjoy games, arts & crafts, and a Food Open each weekend too!
Irvine Park Railroad offers the ultimate pumpkin patch experience--complete with train rides, hay rides, tractor races, face painting, panning for gold, a child-friendly haunted house, great food, and more. Irvine Park Railroad is open 7 days a week from September 17 to October 31 from 10am to 5pm on weekdays and 10am to 6pm on weekends. Admission is free and parking is $3 on weekdays and $5 on weekends.
Johnson Brothers is also centrally located in Irvine and boasts a harvest decorating headquarters. You can pick up all sorts of goodies to make your house festive for fall. There are also pony rides, barnyard animals, and a pumpkin graveyard to enjoy. Admission is free and the pumpkin patch is open every day until Halloween from 9am to 9pm.
Pumpkinpalooza at Zoomar's Petting Zoo in San Juan Capistrano offers all sorts of activities and is included with admission to the petting zoo. Visit Zoomar's Facebook page for more details about this year's event and consider taking the train to San Juan for an added adventure!
Big Horse Corn Maze in Temecula boasts the largest corn maze in Southern California, which just may make it worth the drive. Also unique are its pick-from-the-field pumpkin patch, hay wagon rides, corn cannon, and pumpkin bowling! Enjoy these Harvest Festival activities Saturdays and Sundays through October 30 from 10am to 4pm.
1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue. Okay, that part is true, but it turns out that most of what you and I learned about Columbus when we were in grade school was more myth than historical fact. I know what you’re thinking—don’t ruin it for me. Columbus Day is a holiday after all, legitimately celebrated by many who revere Columbus as a hero, much as I did when I made my first cut-and-paste versions of the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria.
Unfortunately, we may have fallen for a legend instead of a real man. True or False?
--Columbus discovered America.
--Columbus proved to everyone that the earth was round.
--Columbus and the Native Americans got along famously after he arrived in the New World.
OK, so you might have guessed that last statement is a whopper, but the other two “facts” are False as well.
Today’s history teachers have a more complicated task ahead of them when they broach the subject of Columbus. First, there’s getting rid of the misinformation; then, there’s dealing with the darker topics that surround Columbus, namely, genocide and slavery. Yikes!
It’s probably unfair to blame it all on Columbus. Chances are he was just a man of his time--an adventurous spirit looking for fame and fortune and willing to do unthinkable things in the name of progress. Hmm, something sounds familiar here. There are many ugly moments in American history and many flawed individuals we revere as heroes. Still, Christopher Columbus had courage, he had vision and he had persistence…and maybe that's enough to celebrate this Columbus Day.
Find out more about Christopher Columbus, his life and times by visiting:
