River Legacy Living Science Center, Arlington

Nestled in the jewel of Arlington's premier park, River Legacy, is the Living Science Center.  Adults and children are offered opportunities for exploring their natural world. 

I appreciate the natural feel of the LSC, like this amazing tree trunk support.  On the far back wall are some of their resident reptiles.  In the foreground is one of their nature centers, filled with toys for young hands. 

Even their flooring is made from natural stone. 

Every child should have some of these natural tree blocks.  They can be purchased at www.natureexplore.org.  Nature Explore is a "collaborative project of Arbor Day Foundation and Dimensions Educational Research Foundation".  Go online and order a free catalog, they are filled with "research based resources for connecting children with nature".  
Or you can make your own blocks. 

The LSC offers NAYCE certified preschool classes during the school years, as well as many after school programs for older children and summer camps for all ages.  My children have done numerous classes and camps there, and they are some of their favorites! 

They also have an exhibit on the Arlington Archeosaur Site, a nearby dinosaur and prehistoric reptile excavation site.  My son, the future paleontologist, really enjoyed seeing this.  He just started volunteering out at the dig site this summer, and it's all he talks about.  To learn more about the Arlington Archeosaur Site, please visit;  http://arlingtonarchosaursite.com/

One of the more creative playplaces in the LSC, children can imagine that they are the size of a small bug, and share their space with them!  When my daughter had an Alice in Wonderland Birthday party a few years ago, this is where I brought her, dressed as Alice,  and took pictures for the invitation. 

They also have several exhibits outside, including a garden and compost center.  I was jealous because while my tomatoes are doing nothing, their plants were full of plump green ones!  We decided it must be because they are being grown in the shade, as opposed to my own bad gardening. 

Texas Nature Challenge

We completed our third Texas Nature Challenge while we were there.  The challenge was to identify several different things inside and out of the LSC. 

They had to identify different fungus they found along the trail.  That's my son with the magnifying glass.  I love that kid, he's such a .....  fungi!!  I know, but I just couldn't help it. 

They made some bark rubbings, too.  Can I suggest that this is a great activity for younger children to create an appreciation and understanding of trees?  Give them some paper and crayons, and take them out to do some bark rubbings.  As they are transferring the different bark shapes, discuss with them how different trees have different barks, and use the names of the trees.  If you don't know the names, it's okay.  Buy or print out a tree identification list, and you and your child can look it up together.  It's important that your child see that your are continually researching and learning, to develop a lifelong love of learning in them. 

After we finished our challenge, I grabbed my four year old, who in typical fashion I had to carry out of the LSC kicking and screaming, and we drove down to see how work on their new playground was progressing.  River Legacy replace their old playground equipment for new, more naturally inspired equipment.  The reaction from my children was most surprising, because while they liked the new structures, they were most concerned about the trails behind the playground, where they love to explore.  Proving that nature can be the best playground.  Not to fear, River Legacy has left them intact!  We are looking forward to visiting the new playground when it opens, hopefully sometime this month, according to River Legacy staff.

For more information on River Legacy Living Science Center, including their super summer camp schedules and upcoming events; http://riverlegacy.org

Check out my previous post on the River Legacy Paddling Trail; http://havingfuninthetexassun.blogspot.com/2012/05/river-legacy-paddling-trail.html

To read more about the Texas Nature Challenge; http://naturechallenge.tamu.edu/

Chick-fil-a Cow Appreciation Day

For the fourth year in a row, we have participated in Chick-fil-A's Cow Appreciation Day.  Participation is easy when free food is involved!








Chick-fil-A hands out a free meal to anyone who comes in dressed like a cow. We keep telling the kids that you don't also have to act like a cow, but they do it anyway. Except I don't think cows actually eat chicken...

We meet with a bunch of our friends at a nearby park to decorate our shirts.  Each year we have decorated them a little different, and this year we decided to try spray paint!   Some of the shirts ended up more paint than shirt. My daughter even asked me if she could spray paint her legs. I was so proud of her as I told her no. I couldn't believe she asked first! 

This is one of my daughter's friends.  She made a matching cow shirt for her American Girl doll, too.  How cute (and creative) is that? 

Some other friends brought hats to paint, too!  Chick-fil-A has costume and mask downloads on their website, but what I really like about this event is the creativity the kids show!  They come up with some of the cutest things.  It's like Halloween use to be when I was a kid, before the reign of the store bought costume. 

As we left the park, and were driving to Chick-fil-A, we spotted a couple of coyotes in a field.  My son exclaimed that they thought we were cows, and were hunting us.  The remaining short drive was spent with a car of screaming kids!  My four year doesn't need to worry, he would wear the coyote out, too.  To see more of the Chick-fil-A costumes, visit their website; http://www.chick-fil-a.com/Cows/Appreciation-Day

Afterwards, we drove down to Historic Mansfield to see the newest addition there.  It's a very stylishly painted piano sitting out in front of the Chamber of Commerce.  Their mission is "To bring awareness to Historic Downtown Mansfield by creating public displays of interactive art."  How cool is that? 

Mansfield Music Mentors is just two doors down from the chamber.  The hope is that the piano will inspire pianist and other musicians for spontaneous concerts on the street. 

Of course, some not so skilled pianist will take their turns at "tickling the ivories"too.  I headed into the chamber as my junior Van Cliburn's banged away of the keys.  Thankfully, the sound is a little muffled in there. It just makes me giggle to see the kids in their cow shirts, playing on this colorful piano. 

 I love summer!

This plaque is on the piano.  For more information visit www.Mansfield88.com . 

United States Bureau of Engraving and Printing

The Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Fort Worth, one of only two places in the United States where dollars are produced.  Free tours are offered Mon - Fri, but be warned, they don't give out any free samples.   

There was plenty of complaining this morning when I woke my kids up for a road trip to the United States Bureau of Engraving and Printing.  As summer progresses, they are starting to sleep in a little later each day.  I called the day before, and they advised me of the best tour times for today, as some tours have large groups already scheduled.  The tours are offered every 30 minutes, but each tour has a maximum limit of 75.  

We arrived, went through a security check (similar to an airport), and loaded a bus painted to  resemble a dollar, for transport to the tour.  You want to see my picture of the bus?  Well, I would love to show it to you, but they do not allow any cameras, phones or electronics on the tour. 

Once inside, we were able to check out the many exhibits while we waited for our tour to begin.  My four year old loved the backward puzzle of a dollar bill!  There is also a short movie about the bureau, and a scavenger hunt for the kids! 

The tour is really informative, and was interesting.... but I found it hard to concentrate when you are looking at ALL THAT MONEY!  You wouldn't believe just HOW MUCH MONEY is produced there each day.  I'm not going to tell you though, because you really should go take the tour.   

And there is a gift shop.  They sell some unique items, and even uncut pages of bills. 

As we were leaving, we pointed out to the kids the line of visitors that stretched out the door and were waiting in the hot sun.  I felt vindicated, even if I never got an apology for all that early morning complaining! 

For more information, or to plan your own tour; http://www.moneyfactory.gov/tours/fortworthtxtours.html

A fun puzzle idea

As I said, my four year old really liked the puzzle exhibit in the museum.  He, like most young kids, likes all puzzles.  And that's great because puzzles address so many learning objectives, problem solving skills, geometry and hand eye coordination are among some of them.  As we were watching the kids play with the exhibit, my friend, Pam told me of something she had seen on Pinterest.

Using the inexpensive cardboard or wooden puzzles you can find at the dollar store, add magnets to the back of each of the pieces.  Then you can attach the puzzle to an old cookie sheet (hooray for recycling) for fun while traveling in the car, so the pieces don't get lost! 

As she is telling me this, the pieces of no less than 2 of those puzzles are scattered all over the floor of my suburban.  What a great idea!

And of course, you can bring it inside to play with on the refrigerator, too! 

Lewisville Lake Environmental Learning Center

Lewisville Lake is a very popular and commercial lake just north of Dallas.  It's busy shorelines host restaurants and homes, and the water is filled with boats each weekend.  But just on the other side of the dam sits the Lewisville Lake Environmental Learning Center.  This quiet, beautiful and natural area is surprisingly remote from the fast boats and loud music you find on the lake. 

A secluded site, we first visited the dam, where the Elm Fork of the Trinity River spills out to continue south as it joins up with the West Fork in Irving, and winds itself down through East Texas on it's way out to Trinity Bay. 

We were there to complete our second of the Texas Nature Challenges, which was to hike one of the three trails, and make observations along the way.  We chose the Cicada Trail, which runs through a hardwood forest, and seemed to be the one to offer the most shade. It was already about 100 degrees, and the shade makes such a difference!

A photo of one of the cicadas for which the trail is named.  Very aptly named, too.  The cicadas are everywhere, it was almost hard to hear each other, at some times they were so loud. 

This is my daughter.  She too, is something on the trail that made it hard for us to hear each other. 

When we came upon this hollow tree with a large entrance at the bottom, we all stopped and yelled, "The Watcher in the Woods"!  We read the novel by Florence Engel Randall, a couple of summers ago.  The tree, and it's "entrance" looks like something right out of the book.  Literally, a shiver ran down my back when I saw this. 

If you haven't read it, it's a fun, and suspenseful book for kids.  We recommend it, but I wouldn't go down this trail just after reading it.  Unless you want to scare your kids..... 

The Cicada Trail runs along the former river bed of the Trinity River.  When the lake was formed, they MOVED the river to it's present location.  That amazes me. 

After our hike, we enjoyed a picnic lunch, and some COLD watermelon!  Is there anything better than COLD watermelon on a hot day? 

The LLELC also host one of the Texas Paddling Trails, the Beaver Pond Paddling Trail. 

It started off a little muddy, and shallow, and gloriously shady.  My husband took the kayak, and the kids and I were in our canoe.  Beautiful birds flew all around us, including very friendly but photo shy Green Herons.  We came up a young family of them, right out of the nest.  They were just too quick to get a good picture. 

The trail quickly opened up into a large, open pond.  Again, water birds were everywhere.  We paused several times just to look and listen.  The water was surprisingly clean, and we could see fish swimming around us.  My son was really biting his bottom lip, since they don't allow fishing on the trail. 

There was so much to see and do, and we really didn't get to half of it.  But we will be back.  One of the trails has an old cabin, the Minor-Porter homestead.  You know how much I love log cabins.  Tours are offered on the second third Saturday of each month. 

On the second third Saturday of each month, kayak trips are also offered on a 6 mile stretch of the Trinity River.  All the equipment and instruction is provided, but registration is required.  Check their website for prices and more information.  www.kayakpower.com

They also offer badge workshops for scouts, and much more. 

To visit the LLELA website; http://www.ias.unt.edu/llela/main.htm

To read more about other Texas log cabins;  http://havingfuninthetexassun.blogspot.com/2011/08/discovering-texas-past-log-cabins-of.html

To learn more about the Texas Nature Challenge; http://naturechallenge.tamu.edu/

Another log cabin, and homemade lincoln logs

I have a fascination for old log cabins, and found another one to share with you.  We were driving through Midlothian, looking for a place to have dinner, when I saw this old cabin, and braved the rain to run take a few pictures.  Of course, the pictures in the rain were terrible, so after dinner I went over and took some more. 

"THE NEWTON CABIN

IN THE SPRING OF 1848 THE LARKIN NEWTON FAMILY ARRIVED IN THIS AREA FROM NEOSHO MISSOURI IN RESPONSE TO A 640 ACRE LAND GRANT GIVEN THEM THROUGH THE PETERS COLONY.  THEIR CONTRACT REQUIRED THEM TO BE ON THEIR LAND WITH A HOME CONSTRUCTED BY jULY 1 OF THAT YEAR.  MR NEWTON FOUND SUITABLE TIMBER IN THE CEDAR BREAKS OF DALLAS COUNTY TO THE NORTH.  HE BUILT THIS CABIN ON A SITE APPROXIMATELY 3 MILES SOUTHWEST OF THIS LOCATION BY THE REQUIRED DATE.  THE CABIN FEATURES A MIXTURE OF CORNER NOTCHINGS COMMONLY SEEN ON  CABINS THROUGHOUT NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS. PROMINENT IS THE HALF DOVETAIL NOTCH.  THOUGH DIFFICULT TO FORM, PROVIDES A SUPERIOR INTERLOCKING JOINT.  THE NOTCHING AND THE CAREFULLY HEWN LOGS ARE BOTH PRIME EXAMPLES OF QUALITY CONSTRUCTION AND CRAFTSMANSHIP.  THE CITIZENS OF MIDLOTHIAN ARE PROUD TO DISPLAY THE LARKIN NEWTON CABIN, ONE OF THE LAST SURVIVING PETERS COLONY STRUCTURES. "

  We just happened to be visiting on the 1st Saturday of the month.  But it was after 11am, and the weather was not permitting, anyway. 

This sign stands just a few feet away from the cabin, and it gave me a little laugh.  For more information about Midlothian, visit their website;

http://tx-midlothian.civicplus.com/index.aspx

We had dinner at one of my favorites, Campuzano's, just a short walk down from the cabin in  historic downtown.  The restaurant is located in one of the beautiful, old buildings.  It's also family owned.  The Mexican Shrimp Cocktail is worth the short trip off Hwy 287 or Hwy 67.   http://www.campuzanomexicanfood.com/

Do you love old cabins, too?  Please read my other post about log cabin in Texas; http://havingfuninthetexassun.blogspot.com/2011/08/discovering-texas-past-log-cabins-of.html

Homemade Lincoln Logs

Lincoln logs, which were created in 1916 by John Lloyd Wright, son of famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright, have been a favorite toy of kids for almost 100 years.  My kids really enjoy playing with their Lincoln Logs, of which we have A BUNCH, and I'm always searching garage sales, etc. for more.  But as soon as my son got his first pocket knife, at about 10 years old, he started making his own homemade ones.  The trick is to get sticks of similar size and shape.  It's important that the sticks are not dead and brittle, as they will break when being "notched".  He is quick to rummage through our branches after we prune our trees, and the neighbors will often let him know when they are pruning theirs, as well.  When I see how much work he puts into it, I have a whole new appreciation for the people who built these cabins with their crude tools.    

Texas Nature Challenge: Dogwood Canyon Audubon

 This is our 3rd year to participate in the Texas Nature Challenge.  We have had a great time each year, learned about many new places, and met so many new friends! 

 A Little Bit About the Texas Nature Challenge

The TNC is held throughout Texas, and you sign up for your specific region.  Each region has specific challenges you must complete, held at different locations.  All of the challenges are age specific, so any age can compete.  Although it's not really a competition.  There are recognitions for the teams completing the most challenges, best scrapbook, etc, but it's all for fun! 
http://naturechallenge.tamu.edu/

Dogwood Canyon Audubon Center at Cedar Hill

For our first Nature Challenge, we visited DCAC in near to us Cedar Hill.  The day we visited was  Free First Thursday, when the center has special events scheduled and, as the name implies, it's free.
We completed our challenge, which was to pick up trash around the picnic area.  This may not sound like fun to some kids, but my 12 year old LOVES to go to park and river clean ups.  He begs us to "adopt a street", so he can keep it clean ALL THE TIME.  By the way, his same concern is NOT extended to his bedroom! 

We then spent some time in the AIR CONDITIONED nature center. Some of the special events they had planned were guided hikes in the canyon, animal encounters and a craft project.  The nature center shows a wide assortment of things you can find in the canyon. This was a great way for us to identify some of the things we found during our hike!

A neat terrarium they have in the nature center.  My daughter pointed out that it's the same container we keep sugar in at home. Now that she has the idea, I think I'll have to keep an eye on what's living/growing in my sugar bowl!


During the guided hike, we learned some interesting things....

See the conical pits in the loose soil?  These are the traps of larva antlions. 

They sit just underground, waiting on a hapless ant to walk along and fall in, then they quickly emerge and invite them... for dinner! 

We watched for a bit, hoping to see one of the antlions emerge, or better yet, an ant get trapped or attacked.  What, you feel sorry for ants?

The nice thing about the trail is that almost all of it is in the shade.  The bad thing is that my poor photography skills are handicapped much more by lack of proper lighting.  But then, my river of sweat isn't blocking the lens, either. 

Our guides are demonstrating to us the proper technique to roll a log.  What?  You don't know the proper technique? 

Roll the log TOWARD you, so that whatever might be hiding/living/sleeping under the log has an escape path AWAY from you.  This seems important to me. 

This is a large juniper trees growing at the DCAC.  The junipers are important because of their significance to the endangered Golden Cheeked Warbler.  These Texas birds, who do not breed outside of the state, will only nest in these trees, tearing strips of bark for it's nest.  While these trees are numerous in the hill country and central regions of Texas, the area around DCAC is one of the few in N. Texas where the trees grow and these birds can be found.



  

We had great guides that told us so much of the history and ecology of the canyon. 

Thanks, DCAC!!






To read about our last visit to DCAC; http://havingfuninthetexassun.blogspot.com/2012/04/dogwood-canyon-audubon-center-cedar.html

Uptown Village at Cedar Hill

After our hike and clean up, we cooled off at Uptown Village at Cedar Hill's spray park.  

Fort Worth Stockyards

Here's the thing about the Fort Worth Stockyards.  It's BIG!  If you want to do everything, it takes a little planning.  If you want to eat everything, well... good luck!! 

The Fort Worth Herd

 

See how "Cowtown" got it's name. Every day at 11:30am and 4pm, real Texas cowboys herd about 20 impressive longhorns down Exchange St. Traffic is stopped, and everyone is asked to stand on the curbs, actually stand - no sitting is allowed. If you think about why they require this, it makes you step back a little. You wanna give these big guys some room!

You can take pictures from the curb, but don't step in the street for one. My Mommy Tip is to stand across the street from the Historic Livestock Exchange Building, so you have it for a background in your picture. 

Visit The Herd at http://www.fortworth.com/cowboys-culture/herd/ .

Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame

Everything you ever wanted to know about being a cowboy can be found here!  Antiques and interactive exhibits for the kids, and don't forget a visit to the Jersey Lilly Photo Parlor.  For about $30 you can get  dressed up in authentic period costumes for a family photo, done in sephia tones.  My Mommy Tip is to call ahead, they book up, especially on weekends.





For hours and pricing; http://www.texascowboyhalloffame.org/pages/

 

Stockyard Stables

We saw this sign, and had to go do some investigating!   We were invited to look around the stables, which not only had some beautiful horses, but also a llama, a baby camel and more Longhorn Cattle!  We'll be back for the Trinity River Trail Rides when my daughter is 12, their minimum age.  However, they offer lead rides for children under 12 in their arena, on full size horses!  No reservations are required, just show up!

http://fortworthstockyardsstables.com/

Stockyards Visitor's Center

The Stockyard's Visitor Center is a great place to help plan your visit, and learn more about the history of the Stockyards! 
My kids were given little badges, and for the rest of the day my 4 year old would only respond to "sheriff". 
It's cute until you have to call to him in the restroom, "Sheriff, do you need me to help wipe your bottom?".
The Visitor's Center offers guided tours of the Stockyards; http://www.fortworthstockyards.org/