Bookmark This:

The online version of Bay Area resident Tom McMahon’s syndicated newspaper column on parenting is worth checking out and adding to your favorites. Readers regularly contribute their suggestions on family time, reading, family-friendly employers, dealing with difficult topics—you can even find recipes for home-made play-dough! http://www.kidtips.com

Featured Website: GUYS READ

Jon Scieszka, author of The Stinky Cheese Man, The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs, and the Time Warp Trio series of books, is the creator of this web resource encouraging boys to read, and adults to help guide the way. Scieszka says, “Our mission is to motivate boys to read by connecting them with materials they will want to read, in ways they like to read.” At http://www.guysread.com/, you’ll find encouragement, reading lists, and help if you’d like to consider starting a book club in your own community. There’s a lot in “Guys Read” for girls to love, too! Check it out.

Books for Family Adventures!

Parent’s Bookshelf:

The San Francisco Bay Area is loaded with more fun & educational opportunities than any of us can probably experience over the course of one childhood, and yet sometimes when we find ourselves with a free day, we have a hard time thinking of what to do! The book selections below offer hundreds of excursion ideas, many of them cheap or free. Check them out—you might even find something amazing in your own city you’ve never heard of before!

Fun with the Family Northern California by Karen Misuraca

Kids' Adventures Around San Francisco Bay by Elina Wong

Open to the Public: A Guide to the Museums of Northern California by Charlene Akers

The Unofficial Guide to California with Kids by Colleen Dunn Bates & Susan LaTempa

I do not recommend any one of these books over the other; I own them all (and several more), and use them together, as that is what works best for me. See if your local library carries the book by checking the title through http://csul.iii.com/; to read more about them and check availability at your local independent bookseller, check http://www.booksense.com/. I selected these books to feature in part because they all seem to still be readily available in both libraries and bookstores. While you are there, be sure to pick up some audio books for your trip!