As you know, Santa has an enormous list of children who are expecting him to deliver Christmas goodies on Christmas Eve.

In order to track Santa’s progress around the world, NORAD has organized a global tracking system to help you determine when you can expect Santa to arrive in your neighborhood.

Remember to put out milk and cookies for Santa and even some reindeer food before saying your prayers and nodding off to sleep.

Click here to track Santa!

Nothing touches the imagination like the magic of Christmas. Share the joy this Christmas season by taking the family on a magical train ride to the North Pole!

Polar Express and Christmas Train Locations

Arizona

• Grand Canyon Railway. Williams Arizona. Experience the magic of The Polar Express™, the classic children’s book by Chris Van Allsburg. The Polar Express comes to life when the train departs the Williams Depot for a journey through the dark and quiet wilderness for a special visit to the “North Pole.” Enjoy hot chocolate and cookies while listening to the magical story. Watch the joy on the children’s faces when the train arrives at the North Pole, where Santa Claus and his reindeer are waiting! Santa will board The Polar Express and hand each child their own special gift. Make this a family holiday tradition

California

• California State Railroad Museum. Old Sacramento, CA. Tickets are SOLD OUT.
  
• Fillmore and Western Railway Co. Home of the Movie Trains,. North Pole Express.Come in your pajamas & bring your teddy bears for the trip to the “North Pole”. Elves make the exciting trip with you to the “North Pole” where Santa is awaiting our arrival. To help make sure you get into the spirit of the holiday, a story is read, Christmas carols are sang, and a snack of cookies and chocolate milk is served.
  All that is left to do now is believe!
• Roaring Camp Railroads. Felton, CA. Santa Cruz Holiday Lights Train. Ride vintage excursion cars, adorned with thousands of colorful lights, as they roll through city streets past homes of Santa Cruz. Sing along to seasonal carols while sipping hot-spiced cider, listen to musical entertainment, and enjoy a visit from Santa and Mrs. Claus. The train ride lasts 1 hour. Continue the merriment at Santa’s Kingdom at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.

Colorado

• Georgetown Loop Railroad. Denver, CO. Santa’s North Pole Adventure will be there for all to enjoy. You will join Santa and his helpers aboard our decorated and lighted enclosed heated coaches starting the weekend before Thanksgiving. There will be free hot chocolate, candy canes and cookies for all and a souvenir gift from Santa for the children. These trains will operate on weekends starting November 19th through December 18th and then daily through December 30th.

Connecticut

• Essex Steam Train and Riverboat. Essex, CT. Board our locomotive-powered sleigh…for a magical nighttime journey to the North Pole. Every coach becomes a stage for a live, musical performance of The Night Before Christmas. Celebrate the spirit of the season with Santa and Mrs. Claus, sing-a-longs, hot chocolate and sugar cookies.
  

Iowa

• Boone & Scenic Valley Railroad. Boone, Iowa. As we leave the station, your car attendant will greet you, and briefly tell you about our operations, and maybe find out a bit of information about the passengers. We will then read a new story, written just for us, “Santa’s Scenic Valley Ride”. You can preorder the book if you want to have one to read along with and see the pictures better. We will have an “elf” walking up and down the aisle, showing pictures from the book as the attendant reads the story. We should finish the story about the time we arrive at the “North Pole”. At the “North Pole”, Santa will get on the train. He will walk through the train, and greet each child and give him or her a bell. While he is doing that, the car attendant and elves will pass out cookies, as other servers pass out hot chocolate. When Santa gets through the train, he will deboard and stand by his “workshop”. We will wave goodbye to him and head back to town. During the ride back, we will sing seasonal songs, tell holiday riddles and jokes, and maybe have a pajama fashion show if the kids have worn their pjs.
  

Georgia

• Blue Ridge Scenic Railway.Blue Ridge, GA. Night excursions to the Christmas Pavilion at McCaysville, GA – Various Dates- November 24th to December 18th.This is a late afternoon departure (4:00pm) on various dates from the Blue Ridge Depot for the 1 hour train ride while Santa visits with the children in each car and gives each child a Blue Ridge Scenic Railway Christmas memento and candy cane. Santa will pose with the passengers for pictures on the train or in the Christmas Pavilion during the two hour layover.Take time to eat and shop the many store and antique galleries while in McCaysville, Ga./ Copperhill, Tn. Then reboard the train for the hour return trip arriving in Blue Ridge at 8:00pm.

Michigan

•  Michigan Steam Train. Owosso, Michigan. This exciting four-hour journey includes hot cocoa, visits with Santa, holiday rides, model railroad displays, live entertainment, holiday crafts and shopping in the Kris Kringle Mart. Passengers will enjoy the nostalgic ambiance of riding the American rail while viewing the winter scenery of Mid-Michigan.

New Hampshire

• Journey to the North Pole. Lincoln and North Conway, NH. The original Polar Express Event. A magical Journey to the North Pole! The Polar Express Event of New England® offers this truly unique adventure as a four dimensional interactive experience that only happens here in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. We are the original Polar Express Event that includes a wonderful train ride, a sea of elves, and of course, Santa himself! With exclusive treats and gifts, your two-hour holiday journey will include a wonderful walk to the North Pole Theater, where the little boy in Chris Van Allsburg’s story has grown old, and will read the Polar Express book to explain his journey when he was young. This journey will make true believers out of all ages, reminding us that gift of giving is truly the best gift of all. We encourage reading the Polar Express book by Chris Van Allsburg, giving you insight to this memorable experience.

New York

• Adirondack Scenic Railroad. Utica, NY. Inspired by the award winning book by Chris Van Allsburg, come experience the magic of The Polar Express™. read along with the story as the train makes its round trip journey to the North Pole. Meet Santa Claus and enjoy caroling, hot chocolate and a treat. And for those who believe, a special gift for each child. Kids are encouraged to wear their pajamas!

North Carolina

• Great Smoky Mountains Railroad. Bryson City, NC. The 1 ¼ hour round-trip excursion comes to life as the train departs the Bryson City depot for a journey through the quiet wilderness for a special visit at the North Pole. Set to the sounds of the motion picture soundtrack, guests on board will enjoy warm cocoa and a treat while listening and reading along with the magical story. Children’s faces show the magic of the season when the train arrives at the “North Pole” to find Santa Claus waiting.

Oklahoma

• Dry Gulch Christmas Train. Dry Gulch, OK. Enter a world of wonder and delight this holiday season, dine and shop in a place untouched by time, and take a wagon ride through a winter wonderland. Amidst the Old West setting at The Christmas Train, you will find lots to see and do, and Old Claus himself will be on hand to greet you. Aboard an old-fashioned steam train, you and yours will witness an unforgettable retelling of the true story of Christmas. Tickets are SOLD OUT.

 Tennessee

• Three Rivers Rambler. Knoxville, TN. The Christmas Express train ride will operate Thanksgiving weekend and the first three weekends of December, 2011.

Texas

• Texas State Railroad. Palestine, TX.

Washington

• Chehalis-Centralia Railroad and Museum. Chehalis, WA. It’s that time again! This Holiday Season, come ride the train with Santa! Our star event is the return of the Polar Express, where kids and adults get a nighttime ride to the North Pole to meet Santa, with plenty of singing, cocoa, and other events along the ride. Also available, we offer Santa Steam Train rides, shorter runs in daytime that include a visit from Santa on board. Tickets are SOLD OUT.

Fall has arrived, and in many parts of the country it is chilly outside, windows are open to the cool crisp weather and leaves are falling. It is lovely weather to enjoy some homemade donuts and a steaming cup of hot chocolate.

Gather your family in the kitchen to make this delicious recipe and then enjoy them outside while you chat about your day. This is a wonderful weekend tradition!

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose or white whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon cloves
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• Cinnamon and sugar, for rolling
• 1/2 cup butter, for dipping

Directions

1. If using a babycakes donut maker, turn it on to preheat. Otherwise, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a donut pan or regular cookie sheet.
2. In the bowl of your stand mixer, mix together the dry ingredients.
3. Beat in the pumpkin, eggs, milk, and butter until well combined.
4. Fit a pastry bag with a large tip and fill with the donut batter. Alternately, fill a large ziploc bag and snip off the end.
5. Pipe into the donut maker, donut pan, or just pipe in circles on a greased cookie sheet. The dough is thick enough that it should stay in the general shape you pipe it in while in the oven.
6. If using the donut maker, cook for about 3-5 minutes, checking for doneness with a toothpick.
7. If using the oven, bake for about 10-12 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.
8. Cool on a wire rack.
9. Melt the 1/2 cup of butter in a small dish and mix together cinnamon and sugar in a second dish for dipping.
10. Dip the donuts in the butter and then the cinnamon-sugar mixture.
11. Store in an air-tight container.

This recipe is courtesy of Buns In My Oven.com

This is a very fun Halloween craft project for families or school classes. This is so much more fun than going to Target or the Dollar Store to buy something that will make your Halloween yard decorations look just like every other house on the block.

You can build your tombstones using plywood or Styrofoam. Both of these are great for this project because you can buy Styrofoam in larger thicknesses (2″ or more) at your local crafts store and it’s already textured so it looks more like a grave stone from the start. Sheets of styrofoam insulation from a building supply store can also be used.  Be careful though, because Styrofoam can be tricky to do the lettering on, is pretty fragile and thicker pieces get expensive. It is also difficult to store from year to year as you will need to place them in large sealed containers to keep them from begin damaged by other stored items or kicked around.

You can also elect to create your Halloween tombstones out of plywood. It is easy to work with, quite inexpensive and you or somebody you know may already have usuable scrap pieces laying around. A standard 4′x8′ sheet  of plywood will be enough for about 6-10 tombstones depending on their size and shape and should only cost around $10-$15 depending on where you live. Storage for these is easy, as all you have to do is lean them up against a wall. No special storage containers required.

How to Build Your Tombstone

1. Determine the size of your tombstone. 18″w x 24-30″h is a good size for a basic stone. Make sure there is enough room to write the epitaph.
2. Have your epitaphs ready to write. Here are a couple of websites that you can get some great ideas from: Funny Stones to Tickle Your Funny Bones and Eerie Epitaphs. Just have fun making up your own as well!
3. Trace out the design of the tombstone on your plywood or styrofoam. A French curve or cans of various sizes are good tools to help with drawing curves if you are uncomfortable freelancing.
4. Cut out the headstone. A jig saw works well for plywood. You can use a keyhole (drywall) saw or large utility knife for Styrofoam. Be sure to work with your Styrofoam outdoors as it can be very messy.
5. Paint the headstone. For plywood, start with a base coat of grey or off-white. Next, apply a coat of stone texture spray paint to give it a weathered appearance. For Styrofoam, you can just use the stone texture paint. After the paint has dried, paint the epitaph and any other design elements (skull, scrollwork, etc) on to the stone with a small brush and black paint. For styrofoam stones, it helps to press the letters into the foam first before painting them.
6. Secure your headstones. The last step is to attach mounting stakes to the back and place the stone in your yard. Use whatever you have available to keep your tombstones in place. For Styrofoam stones, plant stakes pushed into the bottom work well. For plywood stones, you can screw shelf brackets into the back then use tent stakes to secure them into the ground.

Soon autumn will be here, the color and quality of the light will change, soft breezes will have leaves floating softly to the ground and squirrels will be gathering their acorns for winter. I d0n’t know about you, but our family loves to watch squirrels at work and at play. We settle very quietly on a bench in the backyard with a digital camera and capture great images of them at work.

Here are some of our favorite squirrel poems.

LITTLE BY LITTLE

“Little by little,” the acorn said,
As it slowly sank in its mossy bed,
“I am improving every day,
Hidden deep in the earth away.”
Little by little each day it grew;
Little by little it sipped the dew;
Downward it sent out a threadlike root;
Up in the air sprung a tiny shoot,
Day after day, and year after year,
Little by little the leaves appear;
And the slender branches spread far and wide,
Till the mighty oak is the forest’s pride.

“Little by little,” said the thoughtful boy,
“Moment by moment, I’ll well employ,
Learning a little every day,
And not misspending my time in play;
Whatever I do I will do it well.
Little by little, I’ll learn to know
The treasured wisdom of long ago;
And one of these days, perhaps, will see
That the world will be the better for me.”

The Squirrel

Whisky, frisky,
Hippity hop;
Up he goes
To the tree top!

Whirly, twirly,
Round and round,
Down he scampers
To the ground.

Furly, curly
What a tail!
Tall as a feather
Broad as a sail!

Where’s his supper?
In the shell,
Snappity, crackity,
Out it fell.

Brown Squirrel Song

Brown squirrel brown squirrel
Shake your bushy tail
Brown squirrel brown squirrel
Shake your bushy tail
Crinkle up your little nose
Stick a nut between your toes
Brown squirrel brown squirrel
Shake your bushy tail

The Oak

by Mary Elliot

Observe, dear George, this nut is small;
The Acorn is its name;
Would you suppose yon tree so tall
From such a trifle came?

The Acorn, buried in the earth,
When many years are past
Becomes the oak of matchless worth,
Whose strength will ages last.

In Summer, pleasant is its shade,
But greater far its use;
The wood which forms our ships for trade
Its body can produce.

And many other things beside,
I cannot now explain;
For where its merits have been tried,
They were not tried in vain.

September is associated with many things. This is the time of year children are back in school, the first day of fall – the autumnal equinox begins in the Northern Hemisphere on September 23, 2011 at 5:05 A.M. Eastern Standard Time. From here on out, the temperatures will begin to drop and the days will get shorter. Did you know that the word equinox comes from the Latin words for “equal night?” The fall and spring equinoxes are the only days of the year in which the hours of day and night are equal as the Sun crosses the celestial equator.

In September we also remember our grandparents as National Grandparents Day falls on September 11, 2011 as does the anniversary of that terrible day in New York when the Twin Towers came down.

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Coloring Pages and Printables

If you are looking for some great coloring page resources to keep your little ones absorbed and entertained this month here are some autumn themed coloring pages and printables.

Summer is not quite over, being that it is only mid-August, but the school year begins soon, effectively spelling the end of long lazy summer days for most kids. Try these nine family activities for an exciting end to your summer.

1. Make a memory book. Have everyone in the family get together and make a memory book or scrapbook. Collect photos from your summer or other scraps and artwork that would fit into a book of memories. This will give you a lasting memento of the good times you had over the summer.

2. Have a splashing good time. The summer usually means a good time around water. Throw a pool party or play around in the sprinklers. Have a water balloon fight with your family. Involve water while you still can, before the cold days of winter arrive.

3. Make summertime recipes. Pick out your favorite summertime recipes and make food and drinks with your family. Start with drinks like iced tea and lemonade, or pick another family favorite that you associate with summer. Then, make summer treats or throw a barbeque.

4. Throw a summer party. Get together with your family and throw an end of the summer bash for all of your friends. Your family can plan the party together, cook the food and make decorations. Take lots of photos of your party so you can remember the good time you had.

5. Go to the zoo. Summer is a great time to enjoy the zoo during your free time. Go to the zoo with your family one last time before school takes away much of that free time. It’s also a great way to learn about many different kinds of animals.

6. Play video games. Video games can be fun for the whole family. Some game consoles even have games that’ll get the whole family active. Choose a sports game, a family board game or a racing game and compete against your family for an exciting time together.

7. Go to the beach. The end of the summer might be one of your last opportunities to hit the beach this year. Wear sunscreen to protect your skin. Bring plenty of towels and beach toys. Build a sand castle with your kids. Bury one of your family members in the sand.

8. Get ready for school. Enjoy getting ready for the school year with your family. Find the fun in shopping for clothing and school supplies. Get the whole family involved. Allow your kids to make some of the clothing decisions and to pick out some of their favorite school supplies.

9. Relax at home. Enjoy some quiet time at home before the craziness of the school year starts. Order takeout and talk around the dinner table. Rent some family friendly movies to enjoy while you beat the heat together.

Pick one of these, or come up with your own end of summer activity ideas. The most important thing is that you take the time to enjoy your family. The end of summer can be an exciting time for your family to bond and experience priceless memories.