Tag Archives: Families

Boulder Parks and Recreation Offers FREE Events in July!

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Boulder Parks and Recreation is offering FREE Events in July! 
 
Check out these Free Days at their pools & Rec Centers in July! Want to try out a recreation center or pool? Here is your opportunity to try it for FREE!
 
  • East Boulder Community Center July 9
  • Boulder Reservoir July 22
  • Spruce Pool July 16
  • North Boulder Recreation Center July 24
  • South Boulder Recreation Center July 29

There are also FREE Concerts in the parks throughout July! Find your neighborhood park and plan a night out! All concerts are from 7:00 to 8:00pm.

  • July 1: Harlow Platts Park [1360 Gillaspie] Presents the Boulder Summer Concert Band
  • July 8: Salberg Park [19th St and Elder Ave] Presents the Boulder Summer Concert Band
  • July 15: Scott Carpenter Park [1505 30th St] Presents the Boulder Summer Concert Band
  • July 22: North Boulder Park [9th St and Dellwood] Presents the  Boulder Summer Concert Band
  • July 29: Chautauqua Park [900 Baseline Rd] Presents the Boulder Summer Concert Band

Common Sense Media Helps Parents Make Informed Movie Choices!

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Today my 9 year old and I sat down to find an appropriate movie for him to download for our upcoming trip. We headed to Common Sense Media because it is tough to determine what shows are acceptable for him AND that he will enjoy. I was amazed. I was able to search for movies, then his age, and up popped a list of options. Not only do they have a great list, but the list includes trailers, Common Sense Media’s take on the show, and a rating of appropriateness. Just what we needed!

Want the scoop on age appropriate movies? Head to www.commonsensemedia.org and click on “Reviews” in the left corner.

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Add your criteria such as age, genre, etc…

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And you get some great suggestions with detail on what you are watching, what is good about the movie, what to watch out for, and what you may want to discuss with your child after or before watching the movie. Common Sense Media is opinionated! I like it!

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I am so thankful that we have Common Sense Media to help us make tough decisions about movie watching!

Do You Instagram? This Social Media Tool Is Not Just For The Kids!

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Instagram is a really cool social media tool that allows you to take photos, use great filters to make them look amazing, and then share them on a photo stream with your friends. You choose who shares your photo stream so you can keep your circle as small an you want. Instagram quickly becomes a photo journal of your life.

I love Instagram for families! Let me tell you why…

  1. Take Fun Photos! You can take really fun photos and easily manipulate them with filters. It can be addictive!
  2. Share Your Photos: You can share photos with select friends/family/others–you choose!
  3. Photos Are Available Immediately: The photos you share show up on your photo stream immediately so people can share your experiences and see what you are up to. Even grandparents can keep up to date on what’s happening in your family’s life via your photo journalism.
  4. Photos Are Archived: you can always look back for photos you took.
  5. Print Your Instagram Photos: You can now create great photo prints with your Instagram images.
  6. Keep Tabs On Your Kids: You can follow your kids and even their friends–essential for the teen crowd! If you have a teen you know what I mean.
  7. Share Via Email or Other Social Media Sites: After you snap an Instagram photo you can share those photos via email or many other social media sites. It makes it easy to integrate these images into your life.
  8. And Now Video: Instagram just added up to 15 second video capability with some of the same great filters to make your videos look great!

Instagram Example 1: This weekend we went camping with some friends. The kids and I snapped Instagram photos and uploaded them immediately. It was fun to share the journey with our friends and family! I use the photos to document our adventures.

Instagram Example 2: My husband travels a lot for work. I snap Instagram photos and he can follow what we are up to in almost real time. He can “like” or “comment” on all the photos so he can interact with me and they kids too.

Instagram Example 3: The other day I set my mom up with an Instagram account [took under 5 minutes]. She can now follow her grandkids and our whole family. She does this on her iPhone, but she could do it on another mobile device [iPad, iPad Mini, etc…]. She loves it!

Want to get started on Instagram? Here is how.

Teen Movie Series at the Boulder Public Library Looks Great!

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theaterThe Boulder Public Library never ceases to amaze me! Their programming for our community is exemplary and they certainly do not leave out Boulder Families. I am so excited to see that they are offering Teen Movie Screenings including pizza! So if you have a child going into middle or high school this is the place to be. Drop them off to see movies like:

  • Skyfall: June 18, 2013
  • Lincoln: June 25, 2013
  • Princess Bride: July 2, 2013
  • The Perks of Being a Wallflower: July 16, 2013
  • The King of California: July 23, 2013
  • Edward Scissorhands: July 30, 2013

Now that’s a great line up! And one even your teen will enjoy. So have them grab a friend and head over for these free movie and pizza nights. Can’t beat this! Thanks, Boulder Public Library!

More details on teen programming and these movie nights click here.

Do You Know What Drowning Looks/Sounds Like?

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None of us think its going to happen. We teach our kids to swim. We watch them near the water. But drowning is not always what we think. I just want to raise awareness.

It was almost exactly a year ago when my family was in Mexico. It was there that a friend told me the scariest story about a near drowning of their friend’s 3 year old when there were 6 adults around. Here is what I learned:

  • Drowning is often silent [the victim doesn’t yell for attention or gasp for air so loudly you can hear]

Their story goes that 3 couples showed up at their beautiful house for a relaxing vacation in Mexico. The house had a pool in the back. They were standing around talking when they first arrived since they came from different parts of the country. Kids wandered around. 15 minutes went by and they realized they were missing one child. They calmly looked around. It was then that they found their son floating face down in the water with all his clothing on. They still don’t know how it happened, but it did. It was silent. None of the 6 adults heard anything.

Do you know the signs of drowning? Since it is often silent you need to know what do watch for.

Here is a great article on how to know if someone is in trouble in the water. 

Family Friendly Boulder Creek Festival Events Today [Sunday]

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Boulder Creek Festival Community Dance Stage: Sunday, May 26, 2013

10:00-10:15 AM     Boulder Karate Demo

10:15-10:45  AM     El Badree – Cabaret Belly Dance

10:45-11:30 AM   Dance Dimensions

11:30 AM-12:00  PM     Salsa Challenge – Salsa Los Canineros

12:00-1:00  PM    Streetside Studio – Hip Hop/Jazz/Modern

1:00-2:00  PM     Mile High Belly Dance – Sampling of Denver/Boulder’s Premiere Belly Dancers

2:00-2:30 PM      Schiff Dance Collective – Contemporary Dance

2:30- 4:00 PM     Rocky Mountain School of Dance – Jazz/Lyrical/Tap/Contemporary

4:00-4:45  PM     Grace Studios

4:45-5:30  PM      Kakes Studios – Salsa/African/Partner/Hoop Dancing

5:30-6:30  PM      Blue Moon Dance Studio

6:30-7:00 PM      Ascential Dance Theatre Colorado – Modern/World Fusion Dance

Kids’ Place: In this event area dedicated to children, exhibitors are encouraged to host hands-on activities and games in addition to displaying their products and services at their booths. Location: Between Broadway, Arapahoe and 13th Street

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Boulder Families Kid’s Review: Boulder Opera’s Production of La Cenerentola [Cinderella]

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Screen Shot 2013-05-07 at 2.32.01 PMIn April, Annelies was selected as the Boulder Families Reviewer for Boulder Opera’s production of La Cenerentola. A BIG thanks to Annelies for this thoughtful review!

Hi, my name is Annelies and I’m 11 years old. BRAVO! BRAVA!

What Did You Review? I went to go see Cinderella but in Italian. It was actually called La Cenerentola and it was all opera. There was no one speaking with real voices. In opera they sing really fast and really loud.

What Was It About? It was about Cinderella trying to go to the ball and she does get to go and at the end Cinderella gets married to the prince.

What Was Your Favorite Part? My favorite character was the evil sister Clorinda. She could sing the loudest and she was really funny. She came to the audience and walked around and sang really loud and almost sat on a dad.

What Surprised You About This Opera? All the singers had very different opera voices and I thought that they would have the same voice.

Would You Recommend It To A Friend? I would recommend it to a friend if they liked opera or music or funny plays. It was boring in some parts but still good.

Anything Else You Want To Say? There were a lot of kids even a lot of little kids and they could dance in the aisles. There were also good cookies, cupcakes and water for sale.

If you are interested in upcoming events by the Boulder Opera Company, please visit the Boulder Opera’s website.

Top Family-Friendly Bike Rides in Boulder

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Photo Credit: SMBA

Boulder is a bike town. No doubt. My son is riding with Singletrack Mountain Bike Adventures [SMBA] and were we in for a surprise when we showed up. The kids on the team have nicer bikes than my husband and me combined. Really. 10 year olds with really nice full suspension bikes. But that’s okay, they are getting out to ride together and that is what counts [fancy bikes and all!]. Here are some of Boulder’s top bike rides for kids.

Top Bike Rides for Kids

  1. Valmont Bike Park: Ride the fun trails, try some bowls, learn to ride the stairs, take the downhill courses. The best part about this park [other than it is free] is that it has something for everyone!
  2. Marshall Mesa: This is a tame ride on some rolling terrain. There is some uphill and some downhill, but they are easily walkable if necessary. There are many options here. There are also interpretive signs along the way showing how this area was a coal mining site and the fires that burned here in the past. This ride can be good for many ages and abilities.
  3. Boulder Valley Ranch/Boulder Reservoir: This is great for kids because it is relatively flat, gets them close to a working ranch, and does go by a few ponds. It is open and exposed, so in the mid-day this may not be the best option. This has seemingly endless options for extending the ride for older kids.
  4. Harlow Plats Park: This South Boulder gem has a 1 mile look as well as a shorter loop. It also has a wonderful lake, Viele Lake. Then there is a park for after ride play. Great for young kids!

Boulder Biking Resources:

Upcoming Bike Event: kids bike day

Kids Bike Day at Community Cycles, May 11, 2013

Sunscreen: Keeping Our Kids Safe from Sun AND Chemicals!

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The sun is out in full force these days. Around here we went from winter to spring conditions in what seemed like a day! No longer are we thinking about how to shovel out from the over 46 inches of snow we saw in the Boulder area, but we are turning to the age old question of sun protection. I feel like I have to educate myself again every year!

It doesn’t have to be confusing what we put our skin and our little ones. Here is a Glossary of Terms to help get started:

  • UVA: the rays that cause skin cancer
  • UVB: the rays that are responsible for burns
  • Mineral sunscreens: those containing zinc oxide or titanium dioxide
  • EWG: Environmental Working Group is a consumer group that tests cosmetics, including sun screen to let the public know what’s safe and what’s not
  • SPF: Sun protection factor which is a measurement of the UVB rays only [not UVA]
  • Nanoparticles: EWG states that they are safe in lotion, but not in sprays because nanoparticles can get into your lungs and cause harm.

The most effective protection for UVA is zinc oxide, but it’s tough to put on the kids and leave your skin white and pasty looking. The reason this works so well is it that it reflects the sun and doesn’t allow penetration. But don’t be fooled by companies that use nanoparticles to get sheer coverage because these could be harmful. For more specific information on your sunscreens head to EWG’s Sunscreen Guide.

So What Should a Family To Do? The best thing to do is avoid the sun during the middle of the day. Find shade then and head outside early or late. If you cannot do that then avoid nanoparticles, and use mineral sunscreens. The most effective protection for UVA is zinc oxide, but it’s tough to put on the kids and leave your skin white and pasty looking. The reason this works so well is it that it reflects the sun and doesn’t allow penetration. If you and your kids can stand these sunscreens they are the best.

Delicious Living Magazine recommends the following sunscreen products:

  • Badger SPF 34 Baby Sunscreen
  • Goddess Garden Sunny Body
  • True Natural All Natural Tropical Tan Self Tanner

You can find Delicious Living’s full article on sunscreens here.

Spring Heritage Days at Walker Ranch: Well Worth the Trip for the Whole Family!

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I was not going to do a special post on Spring Heritage Days, but it such a fun event that I decided I needed to go ahead and do it. This is such a treasured Boulder event I wanted to ensure everyone got the message: Go! It’s a great family event! And it’s happening today!

A few times a year volunteers dress up and teach us about what it was like to be a homesteading, pioneering family. Today is that day! Here is what’s happening just up above Flagstaff from 10 to 3 today.

Spring is the beginning of so many new things–garden planting, repairing buildings, bringing baby animals into the world– and that was true for ranch families in the Victorian days also. Join the volunteers at Walker Ranch homestead for a peek into pioneer living in springtime. Smell what’s cooking in the log house, chat with the blacksmith, and do hands-on old-fashioned activities. 

On-Going Activities
Blacksmithing Demonstration Blacksmith Shop
Calf-Roping East of Log House
Children’s Games Field Across from Log House
Laundry West of Granary
Log Hewing and Wood Cutting South of Wagon Barn
Log House Meal Preparation Log House
Butter Churning North of Granary
Field Plowing Field southeast of White House
Live Music Barn Dance Singalong Machine Barn

Special Activities 
Guided Tours 11am; 12pm; 1pm; 2pm In front of Granary
One Room School Session 12noon; 2pm Wheat Barn
Wool Washing 10am-12pm Wheat Barn

Details:

  • 4/28/2013
  • 10:00am to 3:00pm
  • Walker Ranch:  7701 Flagstaff Rd, about 7 miles west of Boulder
  • Free!
  • More details here.