April 21 – 29, 2012 is National Park Week in the United States.  ALL National Parks are offering FREE admission during this week!  Below is a map of our National Parks in Virginia.  Pack up the kids and head on out to one or more of these fantastic national treasures!

View National Parks in Virginia in a larger map

Chick-fil-A is now offering healthier alternatives to the traditional, fast food, kid’s meal.

The new offerings include:  grilled white meat chicken nuggets, 100% fruit applesauce (in a squeezable pouch), and expanded drink offerings.  The new meals have 210 calories and 3 grams of fat vs. the average kid’s meal’s 540 calories and 20 grams of fat.  In addition to the lower caloric and fat values, the new offerings are also gluten-free.

Chick-fil-A is also changing the kid’s drink menu.  1% white or chocolate milk, 100% apple juice, freshly squeezed lemonade or water.  No soft drinks!

Childhood obesity has increased 300% over the past 30 years.  Fast food, while convenient and affordable, has not been high on the “healthy” chart.  Hopefully, other chains will take note of Chick-fil-A’s new menu items and follow suit.

To read more about the new kid’s meal from Chick-fil-A, click here.

Announced yesterday:  Amtrak Virginia will be expanding train service to Norfolk, Virginia beginning December 31, 2012.

This is the first time Norfolk has seen passenger rail service since 1977.  The new Amtrak service will travel from Norfolk to points north such as Washington DC and New York, terminating in Boston.

Amtrak has done very well with their expanded service in the Commonwealth.  Ridership has increased an average of 25% on the routes from Lynchburg and Richmond.  Hopefully, they will see the same success with their new service from Norfolk.

As you may know, we here at V4K.com love taking the train.  Now that Amtrak has added free wifi service, we love it even more!  Now, Amtrak Virginia, let’s get that train running to Roanoke and other points in southwest Virginia!

Congratulations to the 86 Virginia schools who recently received the 2012 Governor’s Award for Educational Excellence!  This award is based on the school achieving both state and national benchmarks for two consecutive years, enrollment in college-level courses, attainment of advanced diplomas, excellence goals for elementary reading, as well as many other criteria.

The 86 schools receiving the award are:

• Albemarle County – Meriwether Lewis Elementary, Mortimer Y. Sutherland Middle and Virginia L. Murray Elementary
• Arlington County – Arlington Science Focus School, Arlington Traditional, Jamestown Elementary and McKinley Elementary
• Botetourt County – Cloverdale Elementary and Greenfield Elementary
• Charlottesville – Burnley-Moran Elementary and Greenbrier Elementary
• Chesapeake – Hickory Elementary and Norfolk Highlands Primary
• Chesterfield County – Bettie Weaver Elementary, Grange Hall Elementary and Robious Elementary
• Danville – Forest Hills Elementary
• Dinwiddie County – Midway Elementary
• Fairfax County – Archer Elementary, Chesterbrook Elementary, Colvin Run Elementary, Cooper Middle, Floris Elementary, Fox Mill Elementary, Franklin Middle, Frost Middle, Great Falls Elementary, Greenbriar West Elementary, Haycock Elementary, Lees Corner Elementary, Longfellow Middle, Oak Hill Elementary, Oakton Elementary, Rocky Run Middle, Thoreau Middle, Virginia Run Elementary, West Springfield Elementary, Westbriar Elementary, Willow Springs Elementary and Wolftrap Elementary
• Franklin County – Burnt Chimney Elementary, Ferrum Elementary and Lee M. Waid Elementary
• Hanover County – Cool Spring Elementary
• Henrico County – Echo Lake Elementary, Gayton Elementary, Nuckols Farm Elementary, Rivers Edge Elementary, Shady Grove Elementary, Short Pump Elementary and Tuckahoe Elementary
• Loudoun County – Belmont Station Elementary, Lowes Island Elementary, Lucketts Elementary, Newton-Lee Elementary, Pinebrook Elementary, Round Hill Elementary and Waterford Elementary
• Montgomery County – Gilbert Linkous Elementary, Harding Avenue Elementary and Prices Fork Elementary
• Patrick County – Woolwine Elementary
• Prince George County – L.L. Beazley Elementary
• Roanoke County – Bonsack Elementary, Cave Spring Elementary, Clearbrook Elementary, Glen Cove Elementary, Green Valley Elementary, Oak Grove Elementary and Penn Forest Elementary
• Rockingham County – Pleasant Valley Elementary
• Salem – G.W. Carver Elementary
• Spotsylvania County – Chancellor Elementary
• Stafford County – Garrisionville Elementary
• Tazewell County – Abbs Valley-Boissevain Elementary
• Virginia Beach – Creeds Elementary, Kemps Landing Magnet, Kingston Elementary, Old Donation Center, Red Mill Elementary, Salem Elementary and Thoroughgood Elementary
• Washington County – Greendale Elementary
• Waynesboro – Berkeley Glenn Elementary
• Wise County – Coeburn Primary
• Wythe County – Speedwell Elementary

To read more about the schools receiving this and the other awards from Governor McDonnell, access the press release by clicking here.

I received an email last week from Peter Faraone, the President of The Homestead in Hot Springs, Virginia.  The Homestead is adding some new family-friendly activities to their present offerings.

1.  A new 18-hole miniature golf course.  According to the email, the “Cascades Miniature” will be modeled after the legendary Cascades Course at The Homestead.

2.  A new, heated pool.  The pool will feature three water slides and a 400 foot lazy river.  The pool will be fed solely by natural waters from the surrounding mountain streams.

The letter did not detail a completion date; however, it did state that these items are currently under construction.  I look forward to these new and exciting amenities at the beautiful Homestead resort!

Growing up, I always loved Thanksgiving, until we actually had to sit down to dinner.  Playing with my cousins, watching football, those were great.  But eating veggies and turkey?  ICK!  So, here are a few tips to help your kids enjoy it more than I did.

1.  ”Thanksgiving on a Stick”.  Yes, that’s right!  Everything tastes better when it’s cut into bite sized morsels and you can stab it with a stick!  How to do it?  Cut each dish into bite-size pieces and separate “buffet-style” into multiple bowls.  Give the kids fondue forks or skewers (with instructions that they are to be used for food only) and let them have fun tasting everything.  Perhaps put a few bowls of dipping sauces out as well (ketchup, bbq sauce, honey mustard, etc.).  You can’t go wrong here…the more choices, the longer they will stay occupied.

2.  Turkey sandwiches a day early.  Kids like sandwiches.  Turn their Thanksgiving meal into a sandwich and they are much more likely to enjoy it.  Ever had a peanut butter and turkey sandwich?

3.  The “Kid’s Table”.  Did you have one of these?  We did.  Oh what fun it was not to have Mom scolding us to get our elbows off the table!  My brother still prefers the kid’s table over the dining room….

4.  Add fruit.  Kids love fruit.  Add it to the kid’s menu with some grapes, apple wedges and berries.  Cut up cubes of turkey and place a berry or grape on top of each.  Stick a toothpick through it and you have a kid’s meal.  Do the same thing with stuffing cubes and apple wedges and watch them disappear.

5.  Watch what the kids drink.  Filling up on high fructose colas and/or juices early in the day will result in a case of the crazies and then a sugar crash just in time for dinner.  Keep the kids hydrated with water and perhaps some sparkling water with fruit juice added as a special drink with dinner.  Anything in a can is processed and should be avoided as it can contribute to upset tummies from all the holiday treats and excitement.

Have a great Thanksgiving!!!!

Image: Tom Curtis / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Congratulations to the Town of Blacksburg!  Today, Business Week named Blacksburg, Virginia the best town in the U.S. to raise kids.

Why Blacksburg?  According to the article, Blacksburg was chosen for many reasons, including:  the low cost of living, the high percentage of residents with a college degree, the excellent schools, the recreation and outdoor activities and low crime rate.

A few weeks ago I created a photo-video of our past 2 years in Blacksburg.  It truly is a special place and I agree, a wonderful place to raise kids!

This Halloween, plan a trip to the dentist!  Not to fill all the cavities from eating too many sweets, but to sell some of that sugary stuff and donate it to a great cause.

The Halloween Candy Buyback program and Operation Gratitude is a great way to bring your child’s candy stash down to a manageable level.  Dentists who participate in the program agree to “buy back” the candy, either in cash, or with dental hygiene “goody bags”, coupons for local businesses, or the like.  The dentists than box up the candy and send it to Operation Gratitude, who, in turn, creates care packages to send to our troops overseas.  Last year, they send over 60,000 care packages!

To see if a dentist in your area is participating in the program, go to the Halloween Candy Buyback website by clicking here.

As you probably know, Virginia is rich in presidential history.  Eight U.S. presidents were born in Virginia (Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Tyler, Wilson, Harrison and Taylor).  We are fortunate to have so many historic presidential sites, homes, retreats, museums and more in the Commonwealth.  Here is a map to see all the landmarks near you!

Presidential Landmarks in Virginia

View Presidential Landmarks in Virginia in a larger map

As I watch the rain fall outside my window on this cold Friday afternoon, we have already canceled our Halloween plans for this evening due to the weather.  Will we get the snow this weekend?  Will any of our planned events still be happening?  A recommendation, before heading out to your planned event, be sure it is still scheduled!

Just a few of the many, many events for kids happening in the Commonwealth of Virginia this Halloween weekend and Monday:

Zoo Boo at the Virginia Zoo in Norfolk.  Please note that this event has been moved to Sunday, October 30th, due to weather.

Fright Light at the Virginia Living Museum in Newport News.  October 29th at 7pm, 8:30pm and 10pm.

Halloween Bash at the Virginia Air and Space Center in Hampton.  October 29th, 4pm – 7pm.

Halloween Madness in Dowtown Marion.  October 29th, 5pm – 7pm.

Monster Mash in South Hill.  October 31st, 4:30pm-7pm.

Howl-O-Fest at Kings Dominion.  October 29th and 30th, 10:30am – 6:30pm.

Montgomery County’s Haunted Trail in Christiansburg.  October 29th, nightfall – 10pm.

Air and Scare National Air and Space Museum in Chantilly.  October 29th, 2pm – 8pm.

Halloween Celebration and Costume Parade at the Marine Corps Museum in Triangle.  October 29th, 12pm – 2pm.

Trick or Treat in Downtown Vinton.  October 31st, 2:30pm – 4:45pm.

Hurrah for Halloween, Frankenstein Slept Here in Norfolk.  October 28th – 30th, various times.