Yes, get out with the children!  Visit the forests, beaches, museums.  Make  nature a regular part of your life.

Walking in the forest is a great way to nourish body, soul and brain.  I like to imagine tossing over my shoulder the niggling worries that enter my mind and find that after returning home I am refreshed and much more relaxed.  Just "being" in nature is relaxing.  I remember hiking up some steep foothills through rather drab deciduous trees in their leafless stage in the Rocky Mountains when suddenly a western tanager flew by, a bright spot of orange-red-yellow color and, I interpreted, a messenger of beauty and joy. We're fortunate to have both forests and beaches in Santa Cruz County!  With this mild weather, how can we resist the parks?  Our local rangers have a variety of levels of guided hikes for us!

Now is an opportune time to visit museums.  Have you been to The Tech? They focus on the positives of the Islamic culture.   Have you visited our own MAH?  It's a very happening place for families with children and for parents out on a fun date night.  Go there soon!  The interactive train display  is there for only one more week. recently? 

This year has seen an increase in the number of parenting workshops available to parents.  Having support and a plan sure beats winging it!  What a blessing!

Suki blogs about organizing energy.  I am totally sympathetic to her perspective!  Enjoy it.

Many thanks to all of you for your support and for spreading the word about our parent resource site, sending us new information, posting your events open to the public on our calendar, sending us little messages of thanks and "corrections" and especially for sending us new readers.  Please tell one more friend about us!  We appreciate you!

Happy New Year.  We hope 2012 will be a great year for each of you.

Parmalee                                         

Like all couples, my husband and I share stories about experiences we have shared, and we have whittled many of them down to a few words. Now that we have kids, the kids also get to take part in this... sometimes. We also have shorthand ways of talking about our experiences with our kids. (Once I'm sure it will have no weight anymore, I will explain one mysterious acronym our kids occasionally still hear: "DPT!")

One of our oldest comes from when I first moved to Santa Cruz to be closer to my husband. The "love commute," as we called it, was wearing us down. I was finally fulfilling my dream of living in San Francisco, but there was no way my husband was leaving Santa Cruz. So I moved south. I didn't know anyone here, and since my husband worked OTH (over the hill) in Silicon Valley, he only had a few friends here, as well. Soon after I moved here, he found out that someone he had worked with was living here with his wife, and we arranged to go on a little adventure together. Upon arriving at the Capitola Wharf, where our adventure started, his wife looked at us and asked, "So who is the Organizing Energy in your family?"

She said it with those capital letters....continued

Setting up for the holidays is much more fun than taking it all down. Try a few simple tips for clean up this year...

PACKING UP YOUR DECORATIONS: Rather than just putting all the ornaments in a box, the garlands in another box, etc. Try packing them up according to where they were in the house (ie: tree, mantle, bannister, table, etc.) Hopefully, this will simplify the set up process next year. Purge worn out, damaged items and make a list of needed replacements.

Keep lights organized by winding each strand around a piece of cardboard cut to fit in a plastic bin (our pieces were 20 by 14 inches). Use scissors to cut a 1-inch slit at the top of one long side and the bottom of the other long side of the cardboard. Secure one end of the lights in a slit, wind lights around, and secure the other end in the other slit. Store stacked light between layers of bubble wrap in bins. (Martha Stewart)

PLANNING AHEAD
1. Update your Christmas Card List. Input the list into your computer. Shop for cards at after Christmas sales.

2. Check your inventory of wrapping supplies. Buy them now at 70% off in most stores.

3. Make sure you have enough storage containers for all your decorations. Storage supplies go on sale every January. Establish a pre-holiday container. Stock it with everything you will need to get a jumpstart on next year such as wrapping paper, tags, ribbons, Christmas cards - all which you might have purchased on sale - and anything else you might need to kick off the holiday season next year.

4. Open your new planner. Start a shopping list for next Christmas. List names. Add gift ideas throughout the year.

5. Establish a budget for next Christmas. Include gifts, cards, postage, shipping costs, gift wrap, special meals, holiday clothing and baking supplies. Set up a savings account and arrange to deposit monthly.

6. Ask family members what were their favorite and least favorite activities this season.

7. Put Christmas goalposts in your planner. For example, July 15th, complete gift list; October 15th, address cards; November 15th, finish shopping; December 8th, reward self with spa day.

Family Circle Magazine printed some very good resolutions for parents. They bear repeating because we are raising the leaders and citizens of the future. 

• I will always love my children for who they are - not who I want them to be.

• I will give my child space to grow, to dream, to succeed, and even to fail. Without that space, no growth can occur.

• I will create a loving home environment, regardless of what effort it takes at a given time.

• When discipline is necessary, I will let my child know that I disapprove of what he does, not who he is. It's a very important distinction.

• I will set limits and help my children find security in the knowledge of what is expected of them. They will not have to guess what is right or wrong.

• I will make time for all my children and cherish our moments together.

• I will not burden my children with emotions and problems they are not equipped to deal with.

• I will encourage my children to experience the world and all its possibilities, taking pains to leave them careful but not fearful.

• I will strive to be the kind of person I want my children to be: loving, fair-minded, giving, and hopeful.

It's a tall order, but these resolutions are all worth the effort. When carried out, they can make a real difference for all our children.

Below is only a partial list

of upcoming events and activities.

Click on our EVENT CALENDAR for more!

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New Year Events!

Enrichment Classes

Did you know...

* The first modern hospital was built in Baghdad over a thousand years ago?
* Persian scholars developed the foundations for modern algebra and algorithms?
* We get the word "camera" from the Arab word "qamara"?
* Inoculation was written about in 8th century India, long before it gained popularity in Europe?
* In the 10th century, a Persian surgeon invented many of the surgical tools we still use today?
* An engineer from Mesopotamia developed the camshaft along with other commonly used machines?
* By the year 644, Persians were using windmills to manage their water supply?
* A man in Cordoba took flight over a millennium before the Wright brothers were born?
* A 10th century Persian surgeon used catgut for internal stitches?
* A 13th century Arab doctor described the circulatory system 300 years before William Harvey?

This amazing, interactive exhibition reveals 1000 years of discovery on 3 continents - Africa, Europe and Asia - and is suitable for all ages.

From the 8th to the 18th century, Muslim scientists drew upon ideas from various cultures, from Greece to Egypt and India, which produced a fountain of ideas that watered the multicultural roots of modern science and technology. Rediscover the roots of Silicon Valley's innovation - algorithms, Arabic numerals, astronomy, aviation, engineering, medical and biological and more!

Designed to unearth the scientific know-how of an Islamic Golden Age, the exhibition showcases the primary fields of Islamic scientific endeavor including: architecture, arts, astronomy, engineering, exploration, flight, mathematics, medicine, optics and water control.

Exhibition hosts Our trained exhibition hosts of Ingenious Innovations: Islamic Science Rediscovered help demystify this grand civilization and introduces visitors to the vast influence of its discoveries and inventions on contemporary society.

After the holidays, you don't have to throw your natural tree away! Here are some tips on what to do with your tree after the holidays:

* Removing the tree: The best way to avoid a mess removing your tree is to place a plastic tree bag (which are available at hardware stores) underneath the stand when you set the tree up! You can hide it with a tree skirt. Then, when the holidays are done, pull the bag up around the tree, stand and all, and carry it outside. Obviously, you will want to remove the stand before recycling the tree. If some needles do scatter inside, it is better to sweep them up; as needles can clog vacuum cleaners.

* Soil erosion barriers: Some communities use Christmas trees to make effective sand and soil erosion barriers, especially for river beds.

* Fish feeders: Sunk into private fish ponds, trees make excellent refuge and feeding area for fish. Bird feeders: Place the Christmas tree in the garden or backyard and use it as a bird feeder and sanctuary. Fresh orange slices or strung popcorn will attract the birds and they can sit in the branches for shelter. (Make sure all decorations, hooks, garland and tinsel strands are removed). Eventually (within a year) the branches will become brittle and you can break the tree apart by hand or chip it in a chipper.

* Living, rooted trees: Of course, next year, you could get a rooted (ball and burlapped or containerized) tree and then plant it in your yard after Christmas. (It's a good idea to pre-dig the hole in the late Fall while the soil is still soft.) NOTE: Living trees have a better survival rate in mild climates like ours.

* Important: Never burn your Christmas tree in a fireplace or wood stove. Burning the tree may contribute to creosote buildup.Recycling options for your Christmas Tree in Santa Cruz, California:

*The easiest option for recycling your Christmas Tree is to have your waste service pick up the tree at your curbside or drop your tree off at local county sites. Call 831-454-2160 for information on scheduled dates in your area for pick up or drop off sites.

*Another option for recycling your Christmas Tree, is to have the tree chipped and shredded into mulch for your garden. Go to Compost Santa Cruz to find information on composting and mulching. This can really benefit your garden by improving and health and fertility of the soil.

*If you have the room in a backyard garden, Christmas Trees can be a perfect bird feeder. Be sure to remove all decorations, hooks, ornaments, tinsel, etc. The tree makes a perfect shelter for the birds and small animals. Leave popcorn strands and the birds will flock to your tree!

*Cut up the branches into smaller pieces and turn them into a beautiful garden pathway.

*Pine needles can be used around your flower beds and act as an insect repellent as well as keeping the deer away.

*If you love the smell of pine, use the pine needles to make potpourri. Add cloves and cinnamon to make it even better!