Review: The Good News About Bad Behavior

I often look to my friends for parenting advice, and I don’t think I’m unique there. So good thing that several of my friends and colleagues not only teach parenting classes, but write books on the subject. One of the most interesting ones I read lately was The Good News About Bad Behavior by Katherine Reynolds Lewis. It’s a book I was anticipating for a few years, as it stemmed from a Mother Jones article, What if Everything You Knew About Disciplining Kids was Wrong? How is that for a provocative title? The premise of the article (and hence, the book) is that bad behavior simply gets worse from the disciplinary techniques that many of us use with our children, including time outs, negative consequences and other punishments. Even positive rewards like gold stars can cause kids to lose their intrinsic motivation, focusing instead on the teacher’s motivation.

What if we paid attention to the reason that kids were not behaving well. Perhaps they’re hungry or bored. Or maybe they have behavioral issues they can’t control, like ADHD. Of course, for each child it’s different, and this can be hard in a school situation when there’s a room full of kids and one or two disruptive kids (or more).

Review: Walt Disney Family Museum in the Presidio

The Walt Disney Family Museum in the San Francisco Presidio opened in 2009, and I regret that this was my first visit. I can’t wait to go back – there is so much to take in at the museum. Here's my review: Walt Disney Family Museum!

The Walt Disney Family Museum. Copyright Deborah Abrams Kaplan

Review: Tipsy Tea Party in Phoenix

When in Phoenix visiting family, the ladies sometimes go for tea (while the guys find a craft brew pub). With the  2017 opening of the Tipsy Tea at the Camby, we had to go there.

The tea is in the Bees Knees, a dark paneled classic bar with mirrored walls and banquettes. Casablanca was silently playing on the wall above the fireplace. 

Copyright Deborah Abrams Kaplan

Review: IFly Indoor Skydiving With Kids

My kids have been wanting to try indoor skydiving for quite awhile. My mother surprised us all with a session at iFly when we were visiting them in Phoenix, though they've had one in the Bay Area for a long time.

What was surprising to me is how much time the whole experience takes, when you're actually only in the chamber for two 1 minute sessions. Our group of nine was there for probably more than an hour. It was a lot of fun, and my son really wants to go back again.

Review: Demi Hugger for Luggage

Every year I go to a conference in New York, and wheeling my suitcase with a briefcase (holding my computer) on the handle. And every few minutes the briefcase slides off. It drives me nuts, but I've never figured out a solution.

Recently I got an email from Demi Hugger, showing me their product. It seemed like a problem solver. They sent me one to try, and I have to say it worked. I took it on a trip recently where I didn't have my briefcase, but rather my trusty backpack, pictured below.

How it works:
The Demi Hugger is like a big sash with velcro. The velcro strip can attach anywhere on the long neoprene strap. It can be wrapped horizontally or vertically. There's an opening so the Demi Hugger fits over the handle/pull, attaching it securely to the luggage. Actually, there's an opening each way to fit it on the handle. It weighs very little but feels quite strong.

Get 'Yer Tickets - Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder

Broadway is again coming to San Francisco, and this time with A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, the Tony award winning musical in 2014 (it won three other Tony awards as well). It's starting its first national tour (and the Broadway show closes the next month). I already saw and reviewed it (you're welcome!) so you can decide if you want to see it and bring the kids. Here's my review of A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder.

When: December 1-27, 2015
Where: SHN Golden Gate Theatre,
Tickets: $45-212. Get them here.

Chicago: Embassy Suites with Kids Review

**This is the last in our series on Chicago. In this series are our reviews of the Shedd Aquarium, the Willis (Sears) Tower or the Museum of Science and Industry). **

When we stay in a hotel, our preference is a suite - that includes breakfast (and even better for one that includes happy hour). We really enjoy having our kids sleep in a separate area, but not necessarily next door. We often end up at the Embassy Suites in downtown Chicago (600 N. State Street). (While we sometimes get rooms to review for the blog, we paid for this one ourselves).

The Embassy Suites in Chicago

We were very happy with the rooms, though we did pay the $10/night extra for the city view and weren't impressed with the view. Next time we won't pony up for the extra. Not worth it, even being on the 9th floor.

Chicago: Museum of Science and Industry with Kids

**This is part of our series on Chicago**
We flew into Chicago early morning, and took a taxi straight to the Museum of Science and Industry (as for luggage - we sent that ahead with my husband who had other plans for the day). We planned to spend the day there but I didn't realize we would spend the ENTIRE day there. So much to see and do. And we still missed out on some of the exhibits. My kids are tween/teen age, and they loved it as much as I did. Plenty for the younger set too.

The motion simulator ride

Some planes "flew" over the miniature set with trains below.

Review: Games for Kids - Niya and Wink

I wanted to share a couple of games we tried recently. We're big fan of Blue Orange Games, as we play Spot It and Gobblet frequently. You can read our reviews Spot It and Gobblet here, as well as some other kid-friendly games). Here are two more games from Blue Orange that our family has now adopted.


Niya by Blue Orange Games  $13.99 (or less)
Ages 7-adult
This is a strategy game where you have 8 qualities (maple leaf, rising sun, birds etc.) and you put your clan token in the space where a garden tile is, calling out the two qualities that square has. Your goal is kind of like tic-tac-toe, only need 4 in a row, or a square of 4. Your opponent then has to put their marker down on another square that has one of the qualities you just mentioned. Then it's your turn - again, using one of the qualities called out. You try to get 4 in a row and block them from getting it. My 11 year old loved it, and it's challenging, though very quick to learn and the games are short. And it's good for adults too.

Wink by Blue Orange Games - $14-16
Ages 8-adult
I'll admit that my husband was not eager to play this game, though the kids couldn't wait. Here's the concept. You set up the cards like you see below, in a big grid. You have your own set of cards, and you pick a number on the board that is not in your hand. Before it gets to your turn again, the person at the table who has that number card in their hand has to wink at you without getting caught. When it's your turn again, if you successfully identify the person, you each get a point. If someone catches them winking at you, they accuse the person. If right, the accuser gets two points. "This was surprisingly fun" my husband said, which is a huge endorsement. The game was pretty silly and resulted in a lot of laughing. We played with people, though it would be even more fun with a bigger crowd. And you should play at a square table, not a rectangular one, to make it more fair. I can see this one getting taken out of the cabinet many more times in our future.

Review: I am Eleven

We finally had the chance to see I am Eleven, a documentary movie that interviews kids in 15 countries (all age 11) about various aspects of their lives, and gives you a glimpse into how they live and think. Given that my youngest is 11, it was fun for him to see what their peers were like in other places.

My husband didn't love the movie, saying it didn't really have a plot. And that was true. When you are interviewing kids in 15 countries who mostly aren't associated with each other, what kind of plot artifice should you use? The director organized it by theme, having the kids talk about issues like bullying, their family, crushes, hobbies, war, social pressures, animals and their future. In this way, kids can see the universality of experience, like that there are bullies in every country. While it may look or sound different, people in every country sing and dance - you can see the differences and similarities.

Summer Products Review: Sunscreen Bands, Powder Sunblock, AttachaPack, Travel Square

I got some summer products (including a back-to-school one) to review for you. These were all given to me to test out - as always, they include my honest opinion.

SUNSCREEN BANDS

I'm a bit of a freak when it comes to sunscreen, since skin cancer runs in my family. Not like it's genetic, but my skin is pale (my kids' skin too) and I grew up in Arizona. So we bring the sun block everywhere. I was very interested in trying out these sunscreen bands that let you know when it's time to reapply sunblock and when to get out of the sun.

They're one time use bands made of some type of plastic, and they are adjustable. You take one

Review: GemShare Site to Share Referrals/Recommendations - Free!

Whether you’re new to a Bay Area community (or anywhere, for that matter) or you’ve been living here awhile, sometimes it’s tough to find the referrals you need. You might need a new hairdresser, roofer, camp, orthodontist, pediatrician, massage therapist, tutor, lawyer, restaurant party location etc.

Two San Francisco moms started GemShare, which I see as a combination of Angie’s List, Yelp and your favorite Facebook (or email) group that shares referrals. Angie’s List costs money and you don’t know the people giving referrals. With Yelp you also don’t know the referrers and you don’t know if the reviews are legitimate. And with your Facebook group or email, you often know the people, but it’s hard to sort and store the referrals for when you need them. GemShare is free and you can see who wrote each review – the site strongly encourages members to use their full name and picture (and from what I've seen, most people comply). Each piece of advice/referral is a “gem,” hence the name.

GemShare contacted us for a sponsored review of their site and to start a Frisco Kids group – which we thought was an excellent community-building thing to do. Please join us on GemShare in the Frisco Kids group! I’ll tell you how here, and I’ll explain more about our review of GemShare below.

Review: Cars Land at Disneyland

This is long overdue from my Disneyland series, but better late than never! I wanted to give Cars Land at California Adventure its own post. I have to say, Cars Land was ADORABLE. They did a fabulous job recreating the scenes from the movie and making them come to life.

The Cars Land sign is at the entrance to Cars Land, not surprisingly. Notice the barrel cacti below - the landscaping was authentic.

As I mentioned in my Disney tips page, the Radiator Springs lines were out of control. I thought I knew what to expect, having done a lot of reading ahead of time. But I was not prepared to

Review: Books I've Been Reading: Finding Gossamyr, Sleep, Cockpit Confidential & Making Your Own Energy Bars

In addition to my pleasure reading (I'm trying to make my way through the third in the Stieg Larsson Girl with the Dragon Tattoo trilogy - while remembering who all the characters are in this complex book with a lot of Swedish names), I've been reviewing some other books you may be interested in.

Power Hungry by Camilla Sulsbury - If you're interested in saving money on snack bars or you want to control what ingredients your kids eat, this is a great book. There are tons of recipes for snack bars, energy bars, performance bars and nutrition bars. You can mix and match ingredients and work off the templates she gives. I haven't tried the recipes yet, but now I'm tempted. Most of the recipes are gluten-free, and the author gives ideas how to make them vegan, nut-free, or other variations you might be interested in. I don't want to say too much more about the book, since I'm writing an article about this for another publication, but there's a lot in it to like.

Cockpit Confidential by Patrick Smith - I'm still making my way through this nonfiction book, but after

reading more than half, I can definitely recommend it. It's written by a commercial pilot who in essay form, answers those questions you have but maybe have never asked. Questions like: how does the plane fly and not drop out of the sky, what is turbulence and should I be scared, how much training do pilots have on different aircraft, how do runways work, what are all the pilot designations (first pilot, copilot), how do the regional airplanes affect traffic and pricing, why can't you use a cell phone in-flight, how to make boarding better, why and when do planes jettison fuel, how do they know how much fuel to carry, how does pressurization work...and many many many more. The book is written in small chunks, so you can pick up and leave off whenever, and not worry about forgetting what you're reading!


Sleep: What Every Parent Needs to Know - by Rachel Y. Moon, MD - American Academy of Pediatrics - I was eager to read this book, since one of my kids has problems falling asleep. I was concerned it would only be about babies/infants, but it actually goes into the teen years. It's not the most exciting read, especially when you're in bed and the Dragon Tattoo girl is calling. But it's organized in a way where you can flip to the chapters of interest. While I wasn't interested in learning how to get a baby to sleep (been there, done that), I was interested in learning about how hormones affect sleep, sleep problems and issues in adolescence, insomnia, how much sleep kids need at different ages, and other topics. We still haven't solved the sleep issue at home, but at least I'm better informed. If your child has any issue with sleep, I recommend getting a book like this to give you more information and ammunition.

Finding Gossamyr - Volume 1 - I was interested in reviewing this book because it's a graphic novel and it involves

math - two things my son is very into. The cover of our book looks different than the one on the right. Same characters, but different coloring and composition. It's not a series I'm familiar with.

The description; "In the world of Gossamyr, power is as simple as comprehension (of math theorems). Denny's unique gift allows him to solve theorems that would drive anyone else insane... He can only solve problems, not consider the appropriate answer for a situation. Fortunately, the children are befriended by allies who strive to send the stranded siblings home before dark forces can use the boy's power for evil."

My son didn't like the book, so I read it. I have to say I found it confusing. The drawings are beautiful. The protagonist Denny is a boy who is likely on the autism spectrum. I say that with all seriousness. He's a math genius, but he has to do things his way and has his rituals and routines. Deviate from those, and you get a tantrum. I like having a boy like Denny for a hero - it's a good message to send to kids who might be a little different and who have their own issues, and message that his caretaker sister should listen to him, because he holds more power than she gives him credit for. That said, I really couldn't understand all the story, which takes place in another world, with alien type characters with more confusing names (it's hard enough with the Swedish names in the Dragon books!).

Review: Exploralab

Hopefully you saw our recent post on the new Exploratorium and our visit. Soon after we went there, we got  the Exploralab book to review.

by The Exploratorium (Weldon Owen, September 2013)

Exploralab, by the Exploratorium (Weldon Owen, September 2013) is a beautiful book with different 150 experiments and ways to explore science and the world. It's a fun read, and the graphic style makes it accessible for kids. There are some "tools" your kid can use, inside the book - like a magnifying glass, a wheel and a window shade, that make it kind of like the board books the younger ones use. They definitely enhance the experience.

As you can see from the page below, the graphics make the book fun for the kids to follow. There's a page in the front showing you how to use the book, like looking at the the yellow lab number in the left corner. The black circle on the right corner lists what's needed. The white circle in the middle giving info on the scientific facts in a light way.

You'll recognize some of the concepts from visiting the Exploratorium,

Review: the New Exploratorium at Pier 15

We finally had a chance to visit the Exploratorium, which reopened in April, in its new location. Now at Pier 15, it's more convenient to other family attractions for both tourists and locals (unless you live in the Marina, in which case, it's further).

We started our day at Fisherman's Wharf, working our way along the water to Tcho for a factory tour, the Exploratorium, and finally to the Ferry Building.

Unfortunately we only had about 2 hours for the Exploratorium that day - tight scheduling on our part. It was not enough time to see everything. Then again, one of my children was having a melt down so we probably couldn't have stayed much longer anyway. I recommend getting a membership and going several times so you won't feel you missed out!

One of the differences in the new site, is that they have some outdoor fun - that's free - even if you're not going inside. They had several interactive exhibits, and we had to push the kids along to get inside to see the rest. They would have been happy hanging out outside exploring!

Review: Drazil Kids Tea Adventure

My kids drink mostly water. They were never big juice drinkers, which is good because I would have limited the amount they drink. Unfortunately they're not big milk drinkers either (though I'm pushing my daughter to drink more so she can stock up on calcium in her bones before the rate starts declining).

But I digress, Drazil Kids Tea contacted me to do a paid review of their kids tea/juice combination, and I agreed, because I thought it sounded like a product that my kids would like. And it's something different and more healthy to drink.

Drazil is a tea/juice combination, containing 45% juice (and 100% Vitamin C for the day), it's (almost) organic and 50 calories a serving. Instead of water as the other half, it contains caffeine free herbal tea. It comes in a single serving juice box. It's pasteurized, has tons of antioxidants, blah blah blah.

And in case you're wondering, Drazil is "lizard" spelled backward,

Review: Boston Harbor Islands - Spectacle and George

 One of the hidden gems of Boston are the Boston Harbor Islands. If you have an extra day (or half day) on your trip, consider going. There are 34 islands in all, 24 with archeological activity on them. Not shockingly, Native Americans used these islands before we settlers did, for hunting, farming and other activities. You can visit 12 of the islands.

Even their recent history is interesting. The country's oldest lighthouse was first built here in 1716, though the British burned it down  in 1776 and rebuilt in 1783. That makes our own Sandy Hook lighthouse (built in 1764) the oldest working lighthouse in the United States. You can tour the lighthouse on Little Brewster Island on a different boat tour, along with two other lighthouses.

The popular Spectacle Island is only a 15 minute boat ride from Boston's Long Harbor. On the way, they gave us interesting information about the islands, which are a National Park area (though the boats are an outside vendor). If you flew into Boston, you'll likely have come into Logan Airport, also known as General Edward Lawrence Logan International Airport, named after a Spanish-American War officer who had obviously never been on a plane. More relevant, though, is that Logan takes landfill from three of the Boston Harbor islands: Governor's, Noddle's, and Apple Islands. Planes land on average every 30 seconds, and we saw quite a few overhead on our boat ride.

Review: Harpoon Brewery Tour - Boston

After touring the Sam Adams brewery in Boston (review here), I heard about Harpoon Brewery, another local stop. Fortunately for me, it was just down the street from the Seaport Hotel where we were staying in the trendy Seaport area.  This time I did not go and drink alone, but rather went with my husband who had just finished a week-long course on immunology, and clearly needed a very big beer. By the way, this is part of our Boston series. 

**And if you like factory tours, check out our post on Bay Area factory tours, which includes local brewery Anchor Steam!

The plan was to take a tour of Harpoon, hang out in their brew pub and then head to the airport a few hours later. Unfortunately, we arrived around 1:30, but the tours were already sold out until 4:30 or later (a common occurrence apparently). Oh well. Fortunately they had a very large bar and rows of long wooden farm tables to park ourselves, though the waitress kept walking right past us (or not at all - it WAS busy and a Friday afternoon) that I finally had to go to the bar to order from there.

I'll tell you a little about the brewery first, 

Review: Sam Adam Brewery Tour - Boston

While I've been to Boston a number of times, I'd never gone on the Sam Adams brewery tour. It's free, with a suggested $2 donation which goes to charity. Here's what I learned on the tour! And by the way, this is part of my Boston series, and I'll be doing a post on Harpoon Brewery as well - another Boston tour stop.

 I read about how popular this tour could be, and how in summer and on weekends it could fill up really quickly. Since I had another agenda for the day, I got there in time for the first tour of the day - a weekday at 10 a.m. By 10:30, I was swilling beer. And hadn't had breakfast. You should eat breakfast first.