Taking the Kids http://takingthekids.com/index.php/ en eileen@takingthekids.com Copyright 2009 2009-07-17T14:00:01Z 41.140896-73.351787This is an XML content feed. It is intended to be viewed in a newsreader or syndicated to another site, subject to copyright and fair use. About Eileen http://www.takingthekids.com/index.php/main/permalink/about_eileen/ bio, media Eileen Ogintz, Taking the Kids
Eileen Ogintz
(click image to enlarge)The meeting of a three-year-old, a cat and a goldfish pond started Taking the Kids, now the leading nationally syndicated family travel column.

Eileen Ogintz’s then three-year-old son Matt, pushed a hapless kitty into a pond at a Wisconsin cottage her family had rented for the weekend. The furious owner insisted they pack up and leave immediately. The embarrassed parents drove home three hours to Chicago in a downpour. “I thought the kitty wanted to eat the goldfish,” Matt explained

Ogintz was a national correspondent for the Chicago Tribune then (1987), covering news stories around the country. The travel editor, hearing her tale of woe about the cat and the goldfish pond, encouraged her to write a story about the trials of traveling with young children. That story led to others. “We realized there were a lot of people like me, parents who wanted help planning trips now that they had kids.” The award-winning syndicated column Taking the Kids, and this popular website grew out of those stories.

Taking the Kids is a major and growing presence online, appearing on online news outlets such as www.msnbc.com, CNN.com, Smartertravel.com, and Frommers.com Taking the Kids also appears in newspapers around the country including the New York Daily News, Newsday, Miami Herald, Cleveland Plain Dealer, and Dallas Morning News, among others.

Ogintz is considered a leading national expert on family travel and is often quoted in major publications such as USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, New York Times and parenting and women’s magazines on family travel. She has appeared on such television programs as “48 Hours,” “The Today Show,” “Good Morning America” and “Oprah,” as well as dozens of local radio and television news programs. Ogintz is also often asked to speak to corporate groups about family travel.

Ogintz holds a master’s in journalism from the University of Missouri, is a 30-year veteran of the news business, reporting for The Anniston Star, The Record in Hackensack, N.J., and Des Moines Register as well as the Chicago Tribune, where she created the paper’s family-issues beat. She has also taught journalism and writing at Northwestern University, New York University, Fairfield University and Quinnipiac University.

From their home in Connecticut, Ogintz travels with her husband, their three children, Matt, Reggie and Melanie, and other young children in the extended family who serve—not always graciously—as Taking the Kids’ special team of experts.

]]> 2009-02-05T16:00:01Z Day One of Family Reunion University http://www.takingthekids.com/index.php/main/permalink/day_one_of_family_reunion_university/ Icebreaker Bingo sounds like a silly game to play at your family reunion, but it works! Also, take a look at the slideshow I presented at Family Reunion University: Family Reunion 101 (PDF, 650 KB). reunion BINGO Anybody? This isn’t typical Bingo. This is “icebreaker” Bingo, designed to get people who don’t know each other (or haven’t seen each other in years) to start talking and laughing.

]]> 2005-12-02T14:43:00Z The Kid’s Guide to New York City http://www.takingthekids.com/index.php/main/permalink/the_kids_guide_to_new_york_city/ The Kid’s Guide to New York City by Eileen Ogintz explores the Big Apple by neighborhood, supplying kid-tested tips on where to go and what to see. Fun facts and tips on the area’s best snacks and souvenirs are also included. books

The Kid’s Guide to New York City by Eileen Ogintz explores the Big Apple by neighborhood, supplying kid-tested tips on where to go and what to see. Fun facts and tips on the area’s best snacks and souvenirs are also included.

From the back cover: So you’re headed for the Big Apple. Now what?! Grab The Kid’s Guide to New York City and turn your family vacation into a mega-fun adventure. Be prepared for new experiences, different cultures, good food, and great shopping! You just might learn something while you’re at it.

This guidebook, written just for you, offers:

  • Tips on what to see and what to do
  • Where to hear all kinds of music, from Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts to MTV studios in Times Square
  • Ice skating rinks, parks, and other places to have fun
  • Where to shop for just about anything
  • Kid-friendly places to eat
  • Where to see all sorts of art, and even make your own
  • Fun facts about landmarks like the Empire State Building and Statue of Liberty
  • A look around New York’s many different neighborhoods
  • Input and advice from kids that live in New York City and from visiting kids, too
  • Pages to write your thoughts and paste in pictures
  • And much more!

]]> 2005-07-07T18:27:20Z Ask Eileen http://www.takingthekids.com/index.php/main/permalink/ask_eileen/ ask If you have a question about traveling with kids, please ask!

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]]> 2005-07-01T16:47:00Z Learn African-American hsitory this summer in Philadelphia http://www.takingthekids.com/index.php/main/permalink/learn_african_american_hsitory_this_summer_in_philadelphia/ Assortment of special events and museum exhibits… dailytip Philadelphia is a great place to learn African-American history this summer thanks to an assortment of special events and museum exhibits. For example, check out The African American Museum in Philadelphia’s brand-new permanent exhibition to learn about the experiences of African-Americans living in 18th Century Philadelphia or examine your thoughts about skin color at RACE: Are We So Different? on view at The Franklin Institute Science Museum.  http://www.gophila.com

]]> 2009-07-17T13:00:01Z IT’S NEVER WHAT YOU EXPECT http://www.takingthekids.com/index.php/main/permalink/its_never_what_you_expect/ I’ve spent the last two days at a spectacular wilderness camp at the edge of Lake Clark National Park in Alaska. Awesome, right?  Yeah for about 10 minutes according to my two 13-year-old traveling companions… Follow Eileen on Twitter and/or Facebook Taking the Kids is featured on CNN.com; MSNBC.com, www.Frommers.com and on many other websites and in many newspapers. blog 2009-07-17T12:05:00Z Another perfect sailing day and did we mention we caught a Mahi Mahi? http://www.takingthekids.com/index.php/main/permalink/another_perfect_sailing_day_and_did_we_mention_we_caught_a_mahi_mahi/ Captain Turo cleans the fish and the sharks act like a bunch of kindergarteners fighting over the scraps… Click: PHOTO GALLERY traveldiary, adventures, kidstakes_abroad imageA lemon shark prowls under our boat shortly after Turo cleaned the Mahi Mahi (click image to enlarge)DAY 5—The sharks look like a bunch of kindergartners, squabbling over the last cookies in the bag.

We are just outside Bora Bora lagoon and it is even more beautiful than the guidebooks (and James Michener) say—majestic green cliffs, crystal clear water teeming with fish.

We’ve just caught a 16-pound Mahi Mahi!  Amazing, we all agree. The line started to pull as we were sailing and all of a sudden our captain Turo and my husband Andy are right there, reeling in the gigantic fish. We can’t believe our luck!  Turo tells us a fish this size would cost $70 or more in the local market.

Click: PHOTO GALLERY

]]> 2009-07-17T12:00:00Z Website finds rental properties that include complimentary activities http://www.takingthekids.com/index.php/main/permalink/website_finds_rental_properties_that_include_complimentary_activities/ Like golf, deep sea fishing, water parks, horseback riding… dailytip We all want to get more for less. That’s where the website www.getmorevacations.com comes in.  It directs you to vacation rental properties in Florida, North Carolina, Alabama, West Virginia and California that include complimentary activities like golf, deep sea fishing, water parks, horseback riding, amusement parks, white water rafting, wildlife tours and more.  And wherever you go, check the official tourism website to see what coupons you can score for free or discounted activities and meals. 

]]> 2009-07-16T13:00:00Z A tour of the Coral Garden with Turo as the pied piper http://www.takingthekids.com/index.php/main/permalink/a_tour_of_the_coral_garden_with_turo_as_the_pied_piper/ We are at a tiny motu or islet off the island of Taha’a called Tau Tau, in a famous snorkeling spot called The Coral Garden that is nothing like I’ve ever seen before… Click: PHOTO GALLERY traveldiary, adventures, kidstakes_abroad image
Turo leads the girls through the Coral Garden (click image to enlarge)DAY 4—The fish are eating out of our hands-literally.

We are at a tiny motu or islet off the island of Taha’a called Tau Tau, in a famous snorkeling spot called The Coral Garden that is nothing like I’ve ever seen before, teeming with striped banner fish and Sergeant Majors, long skinny trumpet fish, iridescent parrotfish, triggerfish and more.  Our captain, Turo, has brought us over in the dinghy from our sailboat moored a short distance away just off shore of the oh-so-exclusive Le Tahaoq’a Island Resort and Spa, where we’ve been invited for dinner.

Click: PHOTO GALLERY

]]> 2009-07-16T12:00:00Z Vanilla beans and black pearl farming on Taha’a http://www.takingthekids.com/index.php/main/permalink/vanilla_beans_and_black_pearl_farming_on_tahaa/ Taha’a is a three hour sail from Huahine. We are in a bay in Taha’a lagoon surrounded by green hills… Click: PHOTO GALLERY traveldiary, adventures, kidstakes_abroad image
Aymeric Champon explains how a black pearl is cultured and grown (click image to enlarge)DAY 3—Meet Morita Hioe and her Danish husband Brian Hansen .

Hioe, an American educated nurse, now runs The Vanilla Valley (email: vanillavalley@gmail.com) on the Tahitian Island of Taha’a.  It was a plantation her grandfather first started, she explained, that had gotten neglected in her father’s day.  “I took over eight years ago,” she says.

Click: PHOTO GALLERY

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