MyTime Calendars

Dance and cook with Goofy and his friends in Goofy's Kitchen!

Brilliant fireworks, beautiful music, and a snow fall surrounded by white lights all combine in the Disney fireworks display to bring the holidays home!

Are you planning any trips to the Magic Kingdom this holiday season? If you are not, then you should! Holidays in Disneyland are truly magical! For starters, it’s pretty tough to find someone that could top the Mouse for his decorating savvy. The entire park gets a serious make-over for the holidays. Toon Towne is complete with snow on the rooftops and you won’t even recognize the Haunted Mansion, which has been overrun by Jack Skellington and his band from the Nightmare Before Christmas. The towering trees, wreaths, flowers, and holiday lights are truly a sight to behold. If you can’t get in the Holiday spirit in Disneyland, then I am afraid there is little hope for you.

If you are planning a Disneyland trip this holiday season and toting along multiple little people with you, we’ve got a few recommendations…

• Transportation. If you have the ability to take the monorail into the park, this will shave considerable time off your morning commute. You must be staying in a Disneyland Hotel (California Hotel, Paradise Pier or Disneyland Hotel) in order to fast pass onto this little gem of a transport system. Presenting your room key along with your park ticket will get you in a full hour before the park opens on select days.
• Food and the “bottom” line. If you plan to be in the park for the entire day, food can be a very daunting expense and major time waster. Again, we are addressing those with little ones here. Based on considerable experience, we recommend you try to limit yourself to two or less meals in the park. Snack before you leave your room. Then eat a good sized breakfast in the park late in the morning (you can hit the rides while everyone else is eating at normal breakfast hours, then eat while the ride lines are longer) then take along a smorgesborg of water, treats and snacks (fruit roll-ups, trail mix, granola bars, fruit, etc.) that will happily tide your little ones (and bigs ones!) over until the next meal. Skip the lunch and have either an early dinner or a late dinner. Again, this helps you avoid the mealtime crowds and time-waster lines.
• Don’t miss the fireworks! You need to give yourself a good hour before it starts to find a decent spot. Take some blankets to sit on. Pick a spot near the castle or near the Small World ride. These are the best locations to be a part of the “White Christmas” part of the fireworks…yes, there is actual snow that will fall! You won’t want to miss it!
• Give the gift of memories! If you’re going to spend all that money on getting your family to the park, then it’s worth it to make sure they remember it, right? Autograph books can help you’re kids interact with the characters firsthand and have some memories to boot. An autograph book that includes picture slots is a must. Our little ones loved to approach each character and “ask for their autograph”, if only to have an excuse to talk to the character one on one. Once finished with the trip, we insert photos of each child with their character friends into this autograph book and it becomes a real treasure for each child. A word of advice for the autograph seeking crowd…it is well worth investing in a “character dining experience” rather than face long lines to meet each character in the park. For the best food and character quantity, we recommend the “Plaza Inn “Minnie & Friends – Breakfast in the Park” hosted by Kellogg’s ” inside Disneyland for breakfast. In one hour, you will fill up at least half of an autograph book.

Good luck on your Disney vacation and we hope you have as much fun as we did! Now go make some memories!

Do you have experiences or tips you would like to share about how to maximize a Disneyland holiday trip? Visit our forum and join in the conversation!

Tags: entertainment, Family and Home, fun, holiday activities, product reviews, tips and tricks
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There's something for every age here!

For those of you looking to get your kids into the Halloween spirit, I’ve got a great place for you to check out this season…Jump and Shout Play Center! Located at 1061 N. Dobson Rd., Suite 110 in Mesa  between Bass Pro Shop and Cinemark, they will be converting their indoor bounce and play area into a “haunted” play center for us from 3:00pm to 8:00pm on October 30 and 31 (a Friday and Saturday).

If you are not familiar with Jump and Shout, then you need to get informed about this great Mesa Riverview secret! With the Mesa location of Bounce U closing down, Jump and Shout is sure to take over the area business with ease offering not only great bounce equipment for all ages but also climbing areas, large video screens and “bubble time” where huge amounts of bubbles rain down on our little bouncers!

This special 2-day Halloween event will offer the following features to our eager little goblins:

• UNLIMITED play on their indoor equipment
• Halloween arts and crafts
• costume contests
• games and dancing
• treats
• a real “slime” station!

The price is only $15.00 per child for over 5 hours of Halloween fun! Don’t miss this great safe, clean and fun Halloween party alternative. It’s great for all ages since they have an area for tots (crawlers to toddlers) as well as larger equipment for older children and even adults!

For more information: This facility also offers field trip options for classrooms, party packages, open play  and full membership options. You can contact this Jump and Shout location at 480-834-7529 and you can read more about them at their website or through my previous article entitled “Info 101: Indoor Toddler Play Zones“ which reviews this facility.

Tags: arts and crafts for kids, costumes, Crafts, easy crafts, Family and Home, fun, halloween crafts for kids, holiday crafts, toddlers
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The Kid Cave, a featured inflatable at the North Phoenix PumpItUp Location

When the temperature jumps to 109 degrees and your kids are bouncing off the walls with unspent energy, where do you go that won’t cause heat stroke, dehydration or heat exhaustion? I have a solution to your problem! …PumpItUp! The Inflatable Party Zone!

They are currently getting ready to celebrate their 4th anniversary on August 31st! Congrats! This will be a special event in that it will offer a free “open bounce” from 5:00pm-8:00pm with groups of 25-30 kids being moved through two bounce zones every 30 minutes (equalling 1 hr of open play for each attendee). Probably the most exciting thing about this anniversary, however, is that Banerjee is going to accept donations to support the American Society of Autism.

Banerjee has hosted events for the Southwest Autism Research & Resource Center (SARRC) before along with many private parties for autistic children’s groups. Banerjee confided, “the (autistic) kids really seem to enjoy themselves…something about the environment awakens something in them and they truly have some amazing fun!”. Banerjee added that he is careful to consult parents in attendance about the environment (ie. music volume and selection) to make sure that he creates the best environment possible for these special needs children.

“We have a deep appreciation and concern for autism in our community…these families are truly special and have given us some sobering insights into the struggles faced by autistic children and their caregivers,” says Banerjee. “This is our way to give back to the community that has supported us these last four years,” he adds.

I would encourage you to attend this free bounce event if possible but if you don’t make it, Banerjee assured me that they are open year round, with the exception of major holidays. Banerjee recognizes that his business depends on the disposable income of families, something not many have a lot of these days. So he has restructured some of the standard PumpItUp! party package options at his location specifically to address these tough economic times. So don’t be afraid to give it a try! Remember, “no matter how far life pushes you down, no matter how much you hurt, you can always bounce back!” (quote by Sheryl Swoopes)

If you have ever been to a BounceU or Jump and Shout, then you will be very familiar with this type of indoor inflatable playground. The North Phoenix location boasts two arenas of over 4000 square feet each, filled with various inflatable activities. PumpItUp has a brightly colored and exciting atmosphere to offer even the most seasoned bouncer! There are 4 valley locations (Tempe, Scottsdale, North Phoenix and Arrowhead) that offer open bounce times as well as scheduled private parties for all ages. For those of you who are bounce-savvy, you might be interested to know that PumpItUp was actually the original “indoor bounce zone”, later adapted by BounceU and others. But now, even BounceU falls under the corporate umbrella of PumpItUp Holdings.

I spoke with Swapan Banerjee, owner and operator of the North Phoenix PumpItUp! location on August 26th about his operation. His facility holds two open bounce sessions per week for smaller kids (6 and under) as well as one session per week for older kids (although these older kid bounce sessions are only available during the summer months and are discontinued during the school year). The open bounce price is $7 per child and siblings two and under can enter free. In order for the two or under sibling to enter for free, though, there needs to be an older sibling that has paid admission.

While they offer these open bounce sessions as opportunities for prospective clients to sample the goods, private parties are their bread and butter. They specialize in children’s parties but have even hosted corporate parties for adults; after all, you don’t stop playing because you get old, you get old because you stop playing!

For more info: Visit the PumpItUp website or you can contact the North Phoenix Location at (623) 434-7867 or visit their location at 22515 N. 18th Drive in Phoenix, AZ 85024-1356.

Tags: entertainment, free stuff, fun, product reviews
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There are a lot of things we can do for our kids at home that don’t necessarily require a structured preschool. For instance, having a designated “school” hour of the day where you are the teacher works really well at our house. I’ve been doing this at home with my kids this summer and it’s been fun for all of us. I don’t know if I’d go so far as to say it’s “homeschooling” but essentially that’s what I’m talking about.

First, I try to time it with my littlest ones naptime. Pick about 10-15 minutes to work on different concepts…for instance, for 10-15 minutes, you work on making the shapes of the letters (moving the pen correctly, making the sound of the letter, etc.). You could even take a “sound safari” (get some binoculars, safari hat, etc.) by walking through the house and trying to find something that sounds like “a” or makes the “t” sound. Move on to math by having a counting activity (how many toys do we have out, lets count them! or if we have 5 toys out and I put one away, how many do we have out now?). Keep transitioning through activities for about an hour. You could even invite a friend or two over to “play school” with you. Essentially, these are the things they are learning in preschool and there is no reason you can’t duplicate these experiences at home. Just make it fun! Have a singing time, a puzzle time, etc. and read, READ, READ!!

With the Culture Pass available at the public libraries, you can visit 14 different venues in the city for free! Great field trip opportunities to places like the Arizona Science Center, Phoenix Zoo, Phoenix Children’s Museum, etc. A word of advice for Mesa Public Library main location attendees, they recommend you get to the library an hour before opening Tuesday through Thurdsay to get a good spot in line (you want to be in the first few spots in line if you want a decent pick of the passes). Check out our previous blog posts on the subject at

• http://www.mytimecalendars.com/archives/21
• http://www.mytimecalendars.com/archives/293

Good luck and don’t torture yourself for not being able to follow the norm. Your kids will do even better spending quality time with you than they would spending 2 or 3 hours with a stranger and having you stressed out with work worries. It might take more effort on your part but it will be well worth it and rewarding for you both.

Here’s some links that might help you network and get some great ideas…

• www.momsclub.org
• www.learningpage.com
• www.mesalibrary.org/Home.aspx

Do you endorse preschools or have you brought your toddler home because of finances or other concerns? Share your thoughts in our forum discussion.

Tags: education, Family and Home, fun, parenting, tips and tricks, toddlers
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Yes! I know, I know…you must be rolling your eyes right about now. Tucson? Really? My answer is absolutely! I have to say, I would have been sharing your same reaction if someone had shared this thought with me. But give me a chance to defend our southern desert.

I recently vacationed here with my family for a weekend away from home. We were looking forward to getting out of town and really didn’t care much where we were going. We are like everyone these days and needed our vacation spot to meet some specific criteria…namely, pricetag and close proximity of activities. Tucson delivered and then some! We stayed at the Tucson Omni National Resort where they are currently running an amazing summer deal where they match dollar for dollar what you spend on your room in resort dollars. So basically, whatever you pay on your room, you get back in cash you can spend at the resort! We golfed, dined, and some of our group even visited their spa…all for the price of the room!

Now, I know what your saying…the food must’ve been nasty or the accommodations had to be poor. But I will tell you now that the room we stayed in was probably one of the nicest, largest and most well-equiped rooms we have ever stayed in. We had a dining area, sitting room, bedroom with two queen size beds, and a bathroom as large as the bedroom. The food was amazing whether we were eating in the formal dining restaurant, eating room service on our couch or munching on some great lunch dishes at the little cafe overlooking the golf course. The pool area was clean and large with a sand volleyball court and two full size tennis courts. They even offered lunch barbequed poolside along with drinks for guests playing in this area.

The golf course was well-manicured and a lot of fun for experienced golfers as well as those of us who don’t play quite as often. It was challenging without being frustratingly difficult. The weather was amazing…warm in the mornings but by afternoon, Tucson’s legendary monsoon storms settled in and dropped the temperature 10 degrees while entertaining us with some spectacular lighting! Who needs fireworks? But Tucson delivered that as well over the fourth of July weekend.

We visited the Kartchner Caverns which was a delight for my husband and I as well as my little ones. Amazing cave formations coupled with a family-friendly guide made the 45 minute tour a great experience for us all. Word to the wise, Kartchner Caverns sports an 80 degree temperature with about 98% humidity so don’t plan to go anywhere you have to look nice for afterwards! We were a little disappointed we couldn’t see the “Great Room” because this area closes down this tim eof year while the bats that make this cave their home are taking care of their babies. But maybe on our next trip.

Pima County Air Musuem had some great hands on activities for the kids as well as some fun historical trivia for the adults!

We also visited Pima County Air Museum. This had a wonderful array of history. I was impressed as I read about the different types of planes how many historical air events took place in Arizona. The kids had a wonderful time playing in the kid-friendly hanger where kids can be hands on with various types of planes, simulators and even toddler friendly equipment. We probably spent at least two hours here and didn’t even see the entire museum. There is a tram that will carry you throughout the outdoor exhibits but we declined this trip because it is not air conditioned and we didn’t like the idea of baking in the sun for 30 minutes. It gives us something to try next trip!

Wyatt Earp, Morgan and Virgil stopped by for a photo

We took the short drive to Tombstone one day as well and had a wonderful time reliving the OK Corral with Wyatt Earp and his brothers. We even got some spooky fun visiting the real life haunted saloon, the Birdcage (I ended up with a few photos here that smack of ghost action!). This museum also has some amazing history. Did you know where the term “Aces and Eights = Dead Man’s Hand” came from? Wild Bill was shot in the back while playing poker…he died clutching his hand of aces and eights. The Birdcage is full of incredible history and worth taking some time to walk around and read the plaques.

I read about a Children’s Museum here as well but we didn’t have time to visit this trip. Hopefully we can make it next trip because there will certainly be a “next trip”! I know most would roll their eyes at vacationing in Tucson, but I’m here to tell you…it’s a wonderful spot for a family on a budget and with a little forethought, you can find some wonderful “things to do” here!

Tags: entertainment, Family and Home, free stuff, fun, product reviews
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Remember to stay hydrated, wear sunscreen and UV protected swimwear, and don't forget to keep those eyes shaded protected too!

Summer heat is upon us and has finally struck with a vengeance! Families are heading to the pools and lakes in droves to seek refuge from the onslaught of summer heat. In our stampede to our phoenician sanctuaries of water this Fourth of July weekend, I hope we can all accept another reminder about water safety. With over 3,582 fatal unintentional drownings in the United States during 2005 (more than one in four were children 14 and younger), this is an epidemic we cannot afford to take lightly. As we march off to our water related 4th of July festivities, please keep these tips and suggestions in mind.

1. Barriers: Most small children who drown in pools are only out of sight for less than 5 minutes and usually one the watch of one or more parents. A simple barrier can help slow down a curious child and even help alert the caregiver to the imminent emergency. In 1991, Arizona passed the pool barrier law, Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S.) § 33-1681, requiring an enclosure surrounding the pool area. Each city has their own ordinance governing the specific application of this law so check your cities website for details.
2. Alcohol and Water Don’t Mix: Alcohol is responsible for nearly half of adolescent and adult deaths dealing with water recreation. It influences balance, coordination, judgement and its effects are heightened by sun exposure and heat (two things Arizona has an abundance of in the summer).
3. Designated Eyes: Decide ahead of time who is in charge of which children and make certain that adult is not involved or distracted by any other activity (such as reading, phone conversation, yard work, etc.). Always swim with a buddy. Mothers should never swim alone with multiple small children.
4. Learn to Swim: Although the American Academy of Pediatrics cautions against swimming lessons as a drowning prevention for children under the age of 4, small children can learn to float on their backs or even tread water. These skills could provide the addition of a few seconds and possibly mean the difference between life and death.
5. Learn CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation): Average response time for emergency assistance was 5:04 for 2005 (http://www.ci.phoenix.az.us/FIRE/fireinfo.html). Drowning occurs within 20 seconds to 1 minute. if a person can be resuscitated within the next 4-6 minutes, they can be saved from most permanent forms of brain damage.
6. Respect the Difference Between Toys and Life Saving Devices: Do not use air-filled foam toys, such as “water wings”, “noodles”, or inner-tubes in place of life jackets. These toys are meant for supervised recreation, not as life-saving or drowning-prevention devices. Once your swimming activities are over, be certain that all floats, balls and any other toys are removed from the pool area so they will not be an attraction to young children to re-enter.
7. Weather: Pay attention to the weather and the forecasts for the day. Here in Arizona we have entered the monsoon season where weather conditions can change rapidly and become dangerous very quickly. Be aware of your surroundings, pay attention to warning signs and notices and respect the power of our unpredictable Arizona weather systems.
8. Stay Hydrated: Just because you’re in the water, doesn’t mean you are getting enough fluids. Our bodies are two thirds water and when you lose large amounts of water through physical exertion and sweat, you could become very sick, lethargic and dizzy. As of 2004, the Institute of Medicine recommends of 2.7 liters (91 ounces) of total water for women and 3.7 liters (125 ounces) for men. This includes water from all sources (foods and drinks). Drink from measured containers (if you’re drinking from an 8oz bottle, it’s not hard to figured out how many bottles you should drink to stay hydrated). Remember that caffeine is a diuretic (meaning it makes you urinate more frequently) so it would be wise to steer clear of caffeinated drinks during any exercise but especially when out in the heat and water.
9. Wear Sunscreen: Don’t forget to lather up your families! The Arizona sun can be a harsh companion in the summer heat. Remember, a tan is the body’s desperate attempt to protect itself from the powerful UVA and UVB rays of the sun as they damage the skin. Wear clothes made from tight-woven cloth or even UV protection. Wear a wide-brimmed hat to protect face, neck and ears. Remember that clouds don’t block UV rays and won’t protect you and there is no cure for sun damage. Regardless of the SPF rating, sun screen should be reapplied every 2 hours, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Enjoy your Fourth of July weekend and keep your families safe around water throughout this summer. I hope this information has been helpful and will be taken to heart as we all work together to protect our children and each other from the dangers of water activities. We would love to hear your own safety suggestions and product recommendations so please follow up in our forums!

For more info: Center for Disease Control, Kids Health, Kids Safety Products 101.

Tags: education, Family and Home, fun, toddlers, water safety
Posted in Family and Home, Parenting Tips, Safety/Health Awareness | 1 Comment »

We have wanted to visit the Arizona Science Center for several years but have always had difficulty with the pricing. With 5 of us (and sometimes 6 if my husband can get off work!), paying for parking, admission, special exhibits, lunch and gas (we live in Mesa) it quickly becomes a very expensive adventure…especially if we want to add on any other activities like the planetarium or the imax movies. But after an hour of waiting in line, we were fortunate enough to get a “Culture Pass” through the Mesa Public Library and were very excited to be able to use it! (Word to the Wise: if you want a culture pass, be at the library an hour before they open and park yourself right in front of the door…the Mesa Public Library puts out 14 passes every morning from Tuesday through Friday and it’s first come, first serve)

Normally, I would have packed lunches for my kids but I read that food was not allowed  inside the museum but there was a cafe for lunch (I didn’t learn until after our visit that they allow food and drink as long as it’s not eaten within the museum – a fact I will remember for our next visit!). So we determined to eat at the cafe. But I was very surprised by the prices and was not quite prepared for it. With the cheapest sandwich being around $9.00 and the cheapest kids meal is around $6.00, it is definitely wise to brown bag it. They have a nice patio outside for us brown baggers.
Because of the pricing, we were hesitant to buy passes to the extra exhibits like the planetarium or the IMAX theater. But I assure you, although we were there from 10:30am to 5:00pm, we were not bored for even a minute! Here’s a run down of some of our favorite exhibits…
The Home Building Exhibit
My 6 year old really loved this exhbit because he is my probable engineer! He loved watching the video of the house being built in accelerated time. We’ve had a lot of development going on around us near our home and he is constantly asking me how it’s done…it was fun to be able to say “well, son, here’s how it’s done!”. My toddler really loved the little play area here and it was a really nice place to let her run around and explore without worrying too much about what she’s up to. She loved the oversized soft lego’s since legos are a very popular toy at my house but her brothers and sisters don’t always want to share!

The Lego Exhibit

Life sized dragon made completely out of legos!

Legos! Need we say more? My kids absolutely loved this one! I have two boys (ages 4 and 6) and they thought this was just amazing! They both came home inspired and ready to build their own “master” lego creations! My 8 year old daughter had a wonderful time play acting in the castle and trying on the dress up with her brothers. She also thought the craft activities were fun and encouraged her brothers to build crowns and shields with her! They still have

them and have been playing with them all weekend! Even my 1 year old had a great time on the little toddler slide…she played there the whole time her brothers and sister were building their lego creations!

The Nature Exhibit

My daughter especially loved this exhibit…she loved the simulation platform and talked about it all weekend! Very amazing stuff. They recreate a hurricane, tornado, earthquake, monsoon storm and volcanic eruptions…complete with the heat sensations, ground vibrations, wind and even rain!

My boys liked the water erosion activity and loved to change the path of the water by building the “sand traps”. The only issue we had here was a couple of older boys that were bullying the little kids. They went so far as to steal the plastic pieces they were using to move the sand right out of their hands and throwing them underneath the plastic covering so the kids couldn’t get at them (It makes me angry when parents are not watching their children…having older kids only makes them more obnoxious and should not be an excuse to let them roam unsupervised). The demonstrations on different kinds of volcanoes as well as the liquid nitrogen demo had my kids completely enthralled the whole time! My daughter brought her camera and proudly talks about her “volcano pictures”! I have to say, the nitrogen demo even had me amazed!

The 2nd Floor Exhibit
I think this was probably my kids favorite. They loved all the hands on activities there were to do here. It was really fun explaining to them why the fulcrum works as we battled it out in a massive tug-o-war!  Learning with them about all the different kinds of energy and how it works was fascinating for all of us. The boys loved trying out the bed of nails and decided they were pretty brave fellows! We really had fun exploring this area and luckily, my toddler was asleep for most of it so I got to play some too! Don’t overlook the boxes of brain teaser puzzles against the wall either…when I finally figured one out, my kids thought I was a pretty cool magician!

These were by no means the only exhibits we enjoyed (making the giant nose sneeze in the Life Exhibit was a favorite of my boys!) but these were definitely our favorites! We were all very impressed with the wonderful staff and how friendly, informative, and indulgent these staff members are towards the kids. They really helped to make it a special day.

Definitely worth attending, especially through the Library Culture Pass. It can be a little expensive if you’re not prepared. The parking garage for the museum will cost you $12 before validation and the special exhibits are priced per person, per exhibit. But there is definitely enough to keep everyone busy without the special exhibits if your on a budgetary diet!

Tags: culture, education, Family and Home, fun, product reviews
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If you’re like many of us looking for fun things to do with our kids this summer that don’t break the bank, Chuck E. Cheese has come up with some fun rewards charts that when completed, can be brought to a Chuck E. Cheese location for free game tokens! Some of the charts include the following:

• Sports Awards
• Tooth Fairy Award
• Getting Dressed
• Reading Rewards
• Active Kid
• Homework Helper
• Potty Training
• Sleep All Night
• Magical Manners
• Doctor/Dentist Good
• Stop Thumb Sucking
• Clean Your Room
• Teeth Brushing

Each completed rewards poster will earn your child 10 free tokens as a reward! What a fun way to encourage good habits in your children.

Tags: Add new tag, entertainment, Family and Home, free stuff, fun
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Thank you for your subscription to MyTime Calendars and congratulations on being one of our winners today! There are a few prizes left for those of you still trying to decide on your membership options…don’t delay and sign up today! Meggin, we hope you and your kids enjoy your new activity books from GrokQuest!

Tags: Family and Home, free stuff, fun
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From 8:00am to 8:00pm today, we’re celebrating our first week live on the web by awarding some very special activity books courtesy of GrokQuest throughout the day! Be one of our first 3 subscribers of the day and you will receive several of these great activity books for your kids! Don’t miss out on this great opportunity to collect some of these great book titles today only!

Tags: education, entertainment, Family and Home, free stuff, fun, toddlers
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