It’s Time for a New Library in Downtown Santa Cruz County Scoop August 2019 By Deb Tracy-Proulx As a parent, advocate for education, and former librarian, I have a deep understanding of the vital role public libraries play in the lives of children in our community. The Downtown Santa Cruz Library is where I brought my own young children for story and craft time. Then they went as third graders to learn how to do research for their California history projects. As middle and high school students, they went to our public libraries to meet classmates for group studying and tutoring. Many Santa Cruz kids spend their after school hours…
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What’s cooking at theme parks? Always Amused August 2019
What’s cooking at theme parks? Deals, healthy options now on the table Always Amused August 2019 By Erik Chalhoub A theme park without food is like a car without wheels — you can’t operate one without the other. With most guests at parks making their visit a day out of it, coupled with the amount of walking to and from attractions, it can be a good workout, and a great way to work up an appetite. But theme park food is notorious for being greasy, unhealthy, heavily-processed grub. Worst of all, it’s overpriced ($40 pizza, anyone?). Sadly, that is still the case, but fortunately no longer the entire story. Over…
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Organic vs GMO’s
Organic vs GMO’s By Kris Holden Summer is in full gear, kids are out of school and the pantry and refrigerator are expected to be stocked with plenty of snacks for hungry active kids. Thankfully, the summer season brings a variety of delicious fruit that kids enjoy snacking on as well as sweet cherry tomatoes and corn. But how does one navigate buying produce if organic is too expensive or not available? What about GMO’s? The Environmental Working Group puts out a Dirty Dozen list. The Dirty Dozen is a list of the 12 fruits and vegetables that contain the highest concentrations of pesticides AFTER washing and peeling. The Clean…
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The Answer to “I’m Bored” Part 2
The Answer to “I’m Bored” Part 2 By Mary Gaukel Forester Read “I’m Bored” Part 1 HERE. In this month’s article I will continue to share summer and on-going opportunities for career exploration. Many summer experiences, courses, clubs, events can help a young person learn more about their own interests, skills, talents, and values. Adults in their lives can help youth see the connection between their interests, skills, talents, values, and potential career pathways. Bike Tech Teacher and Student/Santa Cruz County Office of Education EV3 Robotics: programming, engineering, construction Create Advanced mechanical devices and program motors with EV3 Lego Mindstorms. Ages 10-17 building, programming and commanding your own LEGO…
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Letter From the Editors August 2019
Letter from the Editors August 2019 Dear readers, Talk about being pulled in two directions. August is really the cruelest month. On one hand we are still in the giddiness of summer, hitting the beach, going to camps, taking those last minute trips. On the other, we are in the grips of back to school seriousness. Some Santa Cruz schools start before Labor Day; others, after. So, we have two back to school issues, for August and September. This month, we still have some fun and important summer stories. Miss Placed has a new column helping you get organized for the last days of summer and for next summer as…
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Alien-Nation
Alien-Nation By Bob Derber and Judge Paul Marigonda Custody disputes are difficult and seldom rewarding. More so, where a parent alienates the child against the other parent. This is not a norm for families. But custody disputes are high conflict situations and alienation is often present. Alienation can be hard to identify. It might be the child calling the new ‘significant other’ Dad or Mom, off-hand comments to the child that the other parent is irresponsible or the scheduling of doctor visits difficult for the other parent to attend. Where there is positive co-parenting, these matters may simply reflect circumstances. But if active alienation is involved, this behavior destroys parent/child.…
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What Could Be More Natural? Birth Matters August 2019
What Could Be More Natural? Birth Matters August 2019 By Laura Maxson, LM People have a wide variety of expectations and experiences when it comes to breastfeeding. Many can be surprised when breastfeeding turns out to be harder than they expected. Although most go on to have an enjoyable breastfeeding experience for months or years, they will often remark that they thought breastfeeding would have been more natural. The terms natural, second nature and physiological are often used interchangeably, but they can mean very different things. Lactation is a physiological process – babies have a sucking reflex and breasts produce milk. In that respect, breastfeeding meets one definition of…
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Flea Meds, why are they not working!?!?
Flea Meds, why are they not working!?!? By Dr. Nichole M Brooks, DVM Fish are not the only things biting this summer! Fleas are out there and plaguing our pets. A frequent frustration expressed to me by owners is why the expensive flea medications are not working. The truth is that fleas are incredibly tough to get rid of and can take months to eradicate. Several years ago I treated a young cat with such an intense flea anemia that she needed a blood transfusion. She went on to live a normal healthy life once we got her fleas under control. And just the other day I was looking at my…
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Gymnastics on a Horse
Gymnastics on a Horse This Aptos 13-year-old has been riding, jumping and competing since he was 4 Extreme Adventures August 2019 By Kevin Painchaud Growing up, many kids fantasize about riding a horse through the dusty streets in the old west, jumping over fences and aiming their six-shooter at bad guys. Cole Giraldo, 13, may not be wearing a cowboy hat and spurs, but he is sure living the dream of riding horses and competing at a high level. It was a hot sunny day at White Rock Ranch in Watsonville when I sat down and spent some time talking and taking photos of Cole and his horse that he…
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Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk Summertime Coloring Page
Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk Summertime Coloring Page Send your finished pages to [email protected] or post to our Facebook page!
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Cabrillo College Wins NASA Swarmathon: Around Town August 2019
Cabrillo College Wins NASA Swarmathon Around Town August 2019 Edges Out 23 Other Colleges and Universities in Competition’s Fourth and Final Year Cabrillo College’s Robotics Club has won the NASA Swarmathon, a nationwide autonomous robotics competition with the goal of advancing future space exploration. Cabrillo received the award at the NASA Swarmathon Workshop and Awards Ceremony held at the Kennedy Space Center June 11-13. Cabrillo has participated in the NASA Swarmathon since 2016, when it entered a field of 20 universities and colleges. Cabrillo won the virtual competition, in which participants wrote code for the rover and the code was executed in a simulator. In 2017 and 2018 the Cabrillo…
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Missplaced Helps You Get Organized
Missplaced Helps You Get Organized By Jhoneé Fillmore Still not too late for summer supplies! The summer days in Santa Cruz can lead us into many spontaneous family activities. Be prepared by keeping summer adventure supplies ready. Spontaneous Family Fun Supplies Be sure to include: Backpack, sunscreen, dry snacks, water bottle, picnic blanket, towels, umbrella, trash bags and a change of clothes. With this assortment of items you are prepared for any adventure including a stop at one of the many Santa Cruz beaches, a picnic at Wilder Ranch State Park, a hike in Niscene Marks or an outing to a local playground. Keeping these items in a backpack is…
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Brain Building: Research Supports a “Playful” Approach to Preschool/Kindergarten Learning
Brain Building: Research Supports a “Playful” Approach to Preschool/Kindergarten Learning By Hema Walker Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand. – Albert Einstein Everyone knows that young children love to play, but the latest in brain research clearly shows that children need to play in order to develop the skills that are required for success in academics and into adulthood. This knowledge guides the heart of high quality programs for young children by providing an engaging, creative, hands-on curriculum in a rich environment with…
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Transitioning from Summertime to Schooltime: Ask Nicole August 2019
Transitioning from Summertime to Schooltime Ask Nicole August 2019 Summer is almost over, and we’re getting ready for a new school year. My son will return to college soon (sniff, sniff), and my husband and I will go back to figuring out the daily puzzle of carpool, sports, school, and work schedules. Neither of my kids will say they’re ready for summer to end – and it will be a shock to their systems when they have to set an alarm and wake up early again – but I can feel the anticipation and excitement starting to build. As hard as it is to leave behind the relaxed pace of…
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Happy and Successful Kids Lifeskill 4: Making Connections
Happy and Successful Kids Lifeskill 4: Making Connections By Jan Pierce, M.Ed. Have you ever wondered why some people are artists, writers or inventors? How is it that some people quickly understand the way a story works or the heart of a poem? At least part of the answer is that those persons are able to make connections between bits of information to build a broader understanding. School teachers understand the importance of making connections. Those students able to find the connections between various pieces of information arrive at correct conclusions faster and also come up with unique understandings. They’re good thinkers and often creative thinkers. Very young children develop…
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From Farm to Film New Business Teaches Kids to be the Next Steven Spielberg
From Farm to Film New Business Teaches Kids to be the Next Steven Spielberg By Kevin Painchaud Credit Kevin Painchaud. Making of the movie “The McGuffin” It’s pretty common in our area to go into a restaurant and expect amazing food come straight from the farm. What if you took your kids to a farm and they came back as filmmakers? That is exactly what The Aptos based family farm, Thomas Farms, is doing. Thomas Farms an organic flower farm owned by Aptos locals Kari Lee Thomas and Joshua Thomas. After running a successful business supplying beautiful flowers to New Leaf and Whole Foods and being pioneers in organic farming,…
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Is it Trash or Treasure? City of Santa Cruz Offers Free Tours of Recycling Center
Is it Trash or Treasure? City of Santa Cruz Offers Free Tours of Recycling Center By Karen Kefauver Did you know Santa Cruzans place 30 to 50 tons of material in their blue recycle bins every day? It’s a staggering amount. I strive to recycle as much as possible to help our beautiful city and to reduce my impact on the planet. However, after 25 years living in Santa Cruz and being a devoted recycling nut, I had grown complacent, thinking I pretty much knew it all. Recently, I learned from a local expert that I can do a better job at recycling. Last month, I fulfilled a long-held goal…
