My name is Christine Connally and I have been an Au Pair in America Community Counselor since 2003. My service area includes: Takoma Park, Silver Spring, Prince George's County and Southern Anne Arundel County, Maryland.
Today is Watermelon day! Enjoy a cool, refreshing slice of watermelon. It’s a healthy treat on a hot day like this.
| Fun Facts from Watermelon.org |
|
From About.com
Screen on the Green is a favorite Washington, DC summer tradition. Bring a blanket to the National Mall on a warm night and watch a classic film on a gigantic movie screen. Films are shown on Monday nights beginning at dusk, around 8:30-9:00 p.m. People start to claim their spots on the lawn as early as 5 p.m. Movies play except in extreme weather and there are no rain days.
Screen on the Green 2011
Mondays, July 25 – August 15
Movie Schedule
Location
National Mall between 8th and 14th Streets, Washington DC.
Transportation and Parking
The best way to get to the National Mall is by Metro. The closest stations are Archives/Navy Memorial, Smithsonian and L’Enfant Plaza. Public parking is very limited in this part of the city. On-street parking in Washington, DC is restricted during the evening rush hour. Read more about parking near the National Mall.
Screen on the Green Hotline: 1-877-262-5866
Blog
National Mall, outdoor movies, Screen on the Green, summer, Washington DC
Share on: Facebook, Digg
July 24 is Amelia Earhart Day
Amelia Earhart became the first person, man or woman, to fly solo across the pacific. Another famous flight was her nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic in 1932, the first for a woman.
College Park Aviation Museum is a great place to take the kids for hands-on learning about aviation. Visit their website for hours and upcoming events.
Blog
Aviation Museum, College Park, family, Kids, Maryland, places to go, summerShare on: Facebook, Digg
Dehydration The little ones, especially, forget to drink or to tell you that they need to drink. If you find the children not looking well and/or getting cranky toward the afternoon, it might be because they’re tired, or it might be because they’re dehydrated. Remember: By the time a person feels thirsty, he’s already partly dehydrated, so drink to prevent thirst, not to quench it. Common symptoms of dehydration are crankiness, headaches, aches in the joints and weariness. And don’t allow your child to fill up on juice or soft drinks; these are dehydrators. Water or child-appropriate hydrating drinks are best.
However, if you or your child has severe dehydration (dry mouth, sunken eyes, reluctant to drink, unable to pee or cry, high fever, lethargy), call for emergency help and have your child sip an electrolyte-replacement fluid (such as Pedialyte).
Hot Cars: Don’t EVER leave children alone in the car — not even for a moment. Besides the danger of abduction, the temperature in a car can skyrocket in minutes. And, if you see an unattended young child in a vehicle, please call 911, the police or other emergency personnel. Your call could save the child’s life.
Drowning: Always actively supervise children in and around water. Infants and children can drown in bathtubs, swimming pools, ponds or almost any other water. Toddlers aren’t strong enough to lift themselves back out of a toilet, bucket, container or wading pool.
Sun Protection: Children’s skin and eyes are more sensitive to ultraviolet rays. Babies should be protected from direct sun entirely. Toddlers, preschoolers and older children should be covered well in sunscreen (SPF 30 or higher) at least one half hour before going out in the sun. Sunscreen should be reapplied every hour or so, and it should be reapplied after the child has been in water. Don’t forget ears, hands, feet, lips and under the eyes. Also, make sure your child wears a hat and sunglasses when out in the sun for any length of time.
Au Pair Tips
dehydration, hot weather, Kids, safety, summer, sunscreen, waterShare on: Facebook, Digg
July 18th is National Ice Cream Day! Celebrate by enjoying a few scoops of your favorite flavor or by making your own ice cream at home. Here is a simple recipe. You can change it up by adding a little chocolate syrup, a few chocolate chips, or using a flavoring other than vanilla.
In a quart size zipper baggie, combine…
1 cup of whole milk or half and half
2 tablespoons of sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
In a gallon size zipper baggie…
Fill ½ way with ice cubes
Add 1/3 cup of rock salt (if you don’t have rock salt you can use table salt or kosher salt)
Seal the small baggie carefully and place the inside of the large bag. Seal the large bag and shake the bags until you can see the mixture thickening (about 5 minutes.) It will be cold to hold, so you may want to carefully pass it back and forth between yourself and a partner. Remove the small baggie and wipe the top off (to remove salt water,) unzip and enjoy!
Blog, Kids
activities, fun, ice cream day, ice cream in a bag, July 18, Kids, make your own ice cream, recipe, summerShare on: Facebook, Digg
Here is another fun website with ideas to go along with this week’s Outer Space theme.
Get Crafty: Space Mobile
Make your own star mobile!
What you need:Steps:
1. Draw 6-8 stars on the yellow construction paper. Each one should be a different shape or size.
2. When you’re finished, ask a parent to help you cut out the shapes. Cut around the outside of the lines and then use an eraser to remove the pencil marks.
3. Parent Alert: Using the hole puncher, pierce a hole at the top of each star.
4. Cut a piece of string for each of the stars and tie it around the hole. Tip: Vary the length of the string to help your mobile come to life.
5. Parent Alert: Pick up two straws and make the shape of the letter “X” with them. Staple the straws together where the two meet.
6. Cut and tie a long piece of string to where the staple is and then tie the rest of the strings to one of the four limbs of the X.
7. Hang your mobile by the long string in the middle and in your room from the ceiling or in a favorite corner somewhere around the house. Now, you can look at the stars anytime you want!
Craft from Funschool.com
I thought this video was a nice explanation of how to make the delicious summertime treat known as s’mores. If you really want to live it up, try replacing the Hershey Bar with a Reece’s Peanut Butter Cup! Yum
Click here to register
When the kids are out of school for the summer, one place to cool off is at the movie theater. Below are three theaters in different parts of our cluster area that are offering $1 or free kid’s movies each week of the summer.
Tips to maximize your free movie enjoyment:
After the movie, do activities related to the movie:
15200 Major Lansdale Blvd, Bowie, MD 301-262-9133
Doors open at 9:30 am, movie starts at 10 am
6/21-6/22 – ASTRO BOY (PG) & MEGAMIND (PG)
6/28-6/29 – DESPICABLE ME (PG) & HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON (PG)
7/5-7/6 – BARNYARD (PG) & CHRONICLES OF NARNIA (PG)
7/12-7/13 – MARMADUKE (PG) & YOGI BEAR (PG)
7/19-7/20 – RAMONA & BEEZUS (G) & SHREK FOREVER AFTER (PG)
7/26-7/27 – ALPHA AND OMEGA (PG) & KARATE KID (PG)
8/2-8/3 – NANNY MCPHEE RETURNS (PG) & TALE OF DESPEREAUX (G)
8/9-8/10 – DIARY OF A WIMPY KID (PG) & OPEN SEASON 3 (G)
8/16-8/17 – CLOUDY W/ MEATBALLS (PG) & PIRATES WHO DON’T DO ANYTHING (G)
900 Ellsworth Drive, Silver Spring, MD 301-565-8884
Doors open at 9:30 am, movie starts at 10 am
6/21-6/22 – ASTRO BOY (PG) & MEGAMIND (PG)
6/28-6/29 – DESPICABLE ME (PG) & HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON (PG)
7/5-7/6 – BARNYARD (PG) & CHRONICLES OF NARNIA (PG)
7/12-7/13 – MARMADUKE (PG) & YOGI BEAR (PG)
7/19-7/20 – RAMONA & BEEZUS (G) & SHREK FOREVER AFTER (PG)
7/26-7/27 – ALPHA AND OMEGA (PG) & KARATE KID (PG)
8/2-8/3 – NANNY MCPHEE RETURNS (PG) & TALE OF DESPEREAUX (G)
8/9-8/10 – DIARY OF A WIMPY KID (PG) & OPEN SEASON 3 (G)
8/16-8/17 – CLOUDY W/ MEATBALLS (PG) & PIRATES WHO DON’T DO ANYTHING (G)
2474 Solomons Island Road, Annapolis, MD 410-224-1145
Doors open at 9 am, movie starts at 10 am
6/21-6/22 – MEGAMIND (PG)
6/28-6/29 - YOGI BEAR (PG)
7/5-7/6 – DIARY OF A WIMPY KID (PG)
7/12-7/13 – MARMADUKE (PG)
7/19-7/20 – RAMONA & BEEZUS (G)
7/26-7/27 - PERCY JACKSON & THE OLYMPIANS (PG)
8/2-8/3 - CHRONICLES OF NARNIA (PG)
8/9-8/10 - GULLIVER’S TRAVELS (PG)
8/16-8/17 - SHREK FOREVER AFTER (PG)
Looking for some cool summer fun indoors? Bass Pro Shops (located in Arundel Mills Mall) is offering a variety of free craft activities Tuesdays & Thursdays from 4-6 pm and Saturdays and Sundays from 2-5 pm, now through July 10.
Click here to see the full list on the Bass Pro Shops website
Bass Pro Shops has a large indoor fish tank that my kids always enjoy checking out. For older kids, there is a rock climbing wall (for a charge.)
Additional activities are available. Check with your host parents before taking the kids to participate in these or any activities.
Arundel Mills also has a Lego Store, movie theater and Dave & Busters Game Arcade. It’s not right around the corner (30 minutes from most parts of our cluster,) but worth the drive, if you plan to make a day of it with the kids.
