Gish Picks: Week of April 22, 2009


Welcome to this week's "Gish Picks", where I highlight family-oriented cultural events, products or services. Please note that I "highlight" these events, but I don't know if they are appropriate for your particular children, so choose wisely based on age, maturity and interests. I know many of you go to events based on GISH PICKS recommendations; PLEASE remember to tell the organization that you are there because of us. Word-of-mouth like yours helps our business to grow. In the same spirit, please also feel free to share GISH PICKS with friends and families. Do you have something you would like to promote on Gish Picks? Advertisers can promote family-friendly events, products or services to Houstonians all over the city and the surrounding area who are active parents, involved citizens and great shoppers. We love doing this community service and want to keep it free for our readers but in order to justify the hours spent researching, writing and designing this newsletter, we need advertising support. If you'd like to learn more, please click below. This week I am debuting a new feature in which I highlight a different Houston-area attraction. There are so many wonderful places to visit in our fair city that I want to point them out to you! To get more field trip ideas, log onto www.thesummerbook.com/attractions.html. And if you visit a site I need to include on my list, email me! Now, GO FIND FUN!

SEE THE REENACTMENT OF THE SAN JACINTO BATTLE.

This Saturday, April 25, from 10am-6pm, visit the San Jacinto Day Festival and Battle Reenactment at the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site in La Porte. This up-close history lesson celebrates the battle that won Texas’ independence in 1836. The very full day will include living history camps, period demonstrations, family entertainment, children’s activities, and much more. In the afternoon, hundreds of historical reenactors gather at the San Jacinto Battleground to stage the state’s largest battle reenactment. This is a special year for the Monument since it’s the 70th anniversary of its opening. Completed in 1939, the San Jacinto Monument stands as a tribute to those who fought at the Battle of San Jacinto. Constructed of Cordova shellstone, the 570-foot structure is the world’s tallest war memorial – standing 15 feet taller than the Washington Monument – and includes a 34-foot Texas star. In addition to visiting the Museum’s permanent collections and the display of special artifacts, guests can take the famous ride to the top of the Monument, enjoy the digital presentation “Texas Forever!! The Battle of San Jacinto” as well as tour the special exhibit “Developing Houston: Photographic Treasures from the Cecil Thomson Collection”.

There is free admission to the Festival activities and the Museum and modest fees for the elevator ride, photo exhibit, and digital presentation.

JAPAN IS COMING TO US.

This weekend is the 16th annual Japan Festival, which takes place in the newly updated Hermann Park from 10am-6pm both Saturday, April 25 and Sunday, April 26. The Japan-America Society of Houston instituted the free festival in 1993 in the hopes of developing a stronger relationship between the greater Houston community and Japan. This year’s festival features plenty of taiko (drumming) performances which I personally love! And schools are in on the act: Kolter Elementary, the only elementary foreign languages and cultures magnet school in Texas, and Johnston Middle School, a magnet fine arts school, are showcasing their taiko and choral talents and the Woodlands High School Japanese Club is dancing. You’ll get to experience a variety of Japanese cuisine as well as arts and crafts such as Ikebana (Japanese flower arrangements). But wait! There’s more! There will also be authentic tea ceremonies, martial art demonstrations and children's activities. The festival is located adjacent to the Japanese Garden (a treat all by itself) and I swear you can almost see cherry blossoms blooming while strolling alongside the Jones Reflection Pool. Fittingly, this Festival falls in April – the 8th of the month is a time when Japanese celebrate Buddha’s birthday with a “Hana Matsuri” (cherry blossom) festival.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland presented by InterACTive Theater

"ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND" TWO-FOR-ONE FUN.

InterACTive Theater presents "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" through May 16 with two "Target Super Saturday Matinees" on April 25 and May 16 at 11am. "Super Saturdays" gets ticket buyers two-for-one tickets for only $7. From the director of "The Wizard of Oz" and "Beauty and the Beast," this children's classic will have you laughing all the way down the rabbit hole! InterACTive Theater Company was founded by actors and educators in order to craft productions that keep students engaged and their curriculum alive. Every play includes their signature “interactive” style in which they literally pull audience members onstage to participate. And all of their performances have complimentary lesson plans, TAKS worksheets, and follow-up activities – making their shows a popular stop for school groups and homeschoolers.

GLOBAL YOUTH SERVICE DAY APRIL 24-26.

First of all, I must explain that this "Day" is actually 3 days from which organizations around the nation can choose to celebrate this day of action for youth. You can log onto www.gysd.org/events/2009/us/TX to see what's going on in Texas, but I'd like to highlight a few events:

Light Way School, Grand Opening of their organic garden on April 25, 11am-3pm

The Real School aka Dragon Valley, Open Dialog on Education on April 25, 2-8pm

Waldorf Education for Houston and Shining Star School, silent art auction at G Gallery on Saturday, April 25, 6-9pm

ATTRACTION: CLAYTON LIBRARY

This is a perfect time to visit the Clayton Library, Center for Genealogical Research, which has recently re-opened the original Clayton Home, Carriage House and Guest House after extensive renovations. The Library was founded in 1921 as a special collection for genealogical research at Houston Public Library and was originally housed in the Julia Ideson Building in downtown Houston. In 1968, the genealogical collection was relocated to the Clayton Home at 5300 Caroline Street in Houston's historic Museum District and renamed the Clayton Library. The 1917 home is a three story brick Georgian style house owned by Houston businessman and statesman William Lockhart Clayton and his wife Susan Ada Vaughn Clayton. The growth in the physical size of the genealogy collection created a need for an expanded location for the Clayton Library, which has occurred in various ways over the years. Today the Clayton Library is housed in a complex encompassing the "new" Clayton Building and the former Clayton Home (recently renovated). Thousands of researchers from all over the United States visit the Clayton Library every month.

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My goal is to serve as an information resource for Houston parents through my various endeavors, including:

GISH PICKS, which is online (www.thesummerbook.com/gishpicks_archive.html) and in the Houston Community Newspaper group (www.hcnonline.com);

THE SUMMER BOOK®: A GUIDE TO HOUSTON DAY CAMPS AND CLASSES FOR KIDS AND TEENS (www.thesummerbook.com) which comes out annually on March 1 and is sold at bookstores all over Houston, including Barnes and Noble and Borders; and

SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS, INTERACTIVE WORKSHOPS, PRIVATE CONSULTATIONS, AND ART PROGRAMS that cover topics such as summertime fun, passion-finding (for adults, children, and parents helping their children), marketing, historic preservation, art classes, and activism. All of these services can be tailored for any audience and budget.

The purpose of GISH PICKS is to help parents become aware of all the fun things they can do with their children in Houston and the surrounding area, so HAPPY TRAVELS! Please do give me feedback and ideas, as you are out there in the trenches also looking for interesting things for your family and I want to hear what you find. If you are having trouble getting to a website listed here, try hitting the “Ctrl” button and left-clicking on the web address, which should make it “live”.


Sarah Gish Gish Creative 1940-A Fountainview, PMB 116 Houston, Texas 77057 phone/fax: 713.532.1173 email: sarah@gishcreative.com web: www.gishcreative.com and: www.thesummerbook.com and: www.saveourlandmarks.org © 2009 Sarah Gish Designed by West of the World