Family Day Out 2010- tomorrow Sept. 28th

We all know the importance of sitting down to dine with our kids.  Two programs are in effect this week to encourage us to remember how valuable this act it.

The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse declared today Family Day 2010. 

Tomorrow is Family Day Out 2010. Participating restaurants offer a free child's meal with the purchase of an adult's. Check out this link to the California Restaurant Association for more info.

 Thanks, First Lady Maria Shriver =)

Now can your husband pay off our state's debt?

Or at least support the schools??

Mother's Day activities at the UCLA Family Commons

Click here. Fun place. Easy parking. Enjoy!

The Very Hungry for Butterflies Mom

It's back!
Wahoo! Can't wait...

Is Your Daddy A Thief? Because he stole the stars from the sky....

(Photo courtesy of NASA).
Griffith Observatory here in LA is hosting their annual Public Star Parties again.

What: Take your main squeeze(s) to Griffith Observatory’s monthly celestial gathering — complete with telescopes and astronomers — to find out what all the doomsday fuss is about.
Why: We’ll take helium and hydrogen over the flesh-and-bone varietal any day. When: Sat., 2-9:45 p.m.
Where: 2800 E. Observatory Rd. (213-473-0800)

If you don't live near LA, Google the nearest observatory to you and suggest they get in the act =)

There was a farmer who had a CSA and Tanaka was his name-o

I picked up our CSA box again today. Mama is loving those carrots! This week we also have red lettuce, butter lettuce, avocados, parsley, radicchio, some oranges and beautiful green onions.

This past Saturday we were invited to the farm for CSA Day. Lots of fun and very educational for all of us. All "box families" are invited to come down to the farm and select their own veggies to be grilled right there and served for lunch. They had washing stations, seasoning stations and some other veggies to add to the mix.

Despite the looming "storm" and momentary sprinkle, the 12 or so families from our CSA were all cheery and didn't mind the one-hour drive down.

The boys LOVED picking their own food and running up and down the rows looking for the best of the best. I appreciated the extra "grit" I tasted in my beets...genuine Irvine soil. =) Ever since attending they've been asking if everything on their plate came from "Farmer Tanaka." Even the pasta noodles =)

If you don't have the opportunity to purchase produce locally, check out and print EWG's Shopper Guide to the Dirty Dozen to take with you when shopping.

Another worthwhile cause - Worth Your While Wednesday

FlatDaddies
Flat Daddies are full-size printed posters (waist and up) of parents who are serving overseas in the military.
You can give a FlatDaddy to a military family with your $50 donation. Imagine the connections for the children. Having Daddy's image with them wherever they go, to hug and talk to....priceless and inspiring.

Friday Family Fun

A family that I greatly admire does "Friday Family Movie Night" every week. They have 2 daughters, both of whom have been in my first grade classroom and are well-balanced, amazing little women. Even before Curly was born I suggested to Mr. P that we start this tradition ourselves. I grew up going to the movies, every weekend, on holidays even. My extended family has more nicknames and random quotes from the big screen to fill Leonard Malten's next book. I've always enjoyed the feeling of escaping into a well-filmed and well-presented story even if the "well-" part isn't exactly there...

Popcorn, picnic dinner, make-your-own desserts were some of the other ideas we thought we'd try. The boys are still too young to sit through a movie, but I look forward to sharing with them the flicks of my youth. Those that stayed with me and those that I never got the chance to enjoy. (Believe it or not, but I don't think I've ever seen "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" all the way through...) Put every Disney film on the list, please.

Mr. P has a cousin whose family does "Friday Night Wii" and they always require costumes.

Here's a list from Daily Babble that might help you get started. Some are for the older crowd. Mostly live action so let's generate our own animated features list.

20+ Top Family Movies

1. Planet Earth (2006)

2. Young Tom Edison (1940)

3. Young Mr. Lincoln (1939)

4. Pride of the Yankees (1942)

5. Hans Christian Andersen (1952)

6. The Story of Louis Pasteur (1935)

7. The Miracle Worker (1962)

8. Cheaper by the Dozen (1950)

9. Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)

10. Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man

11. Young Frankenstein (1974)

12. Hoosiers (1986)

13. Rocky (1976)

14. The Natural (1984)

15. Chariots of Fire (1981)

16. Bad News Bears (1976)

17. The Simpsons

18. Wallace and Gromit

19. Plymptoons — The Complete Works of Bill Plympton

20. The Red Balloon (1991, France)

21. Skinny and Fatty (1959, Japan)

22. Swiss Family Robinson (1960)

23. Modern Times (1936)

24. City Lights (1931)

25. The Princess Bride (1987)

26. Groundhog Day (1993)

What are some of the traditions that you have that may center around flicks or family fun on weekends?