Gish Picks: Week of November 7, 2007


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 advertise 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. Now, GO FIND FUN!

IT'S TIME FOR THE 13TH ANNUAL "CHILDREN'S FESTIVAL".

Join the lovable Barney™, award-winning musicians Justin Roberts and the Not Ready for Naptime Players, musicians and dancers Jean Paul Samputu and the Ingeli Troupe of Rwanda, the wacky characters in the "Let’s Go Science Show" and the Collective Sound Cloggers this weekend at the 13th Annual Children's Festival at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavillion in The Woodlands. Families are invited to this weekend of fun, adventure and learning this Saturday, November 10 from 10am until 5pm and this Sunday, November 11 from noon until 5pm.

In addition to world-class children’s performers, the Festival includes hands-on arts and crafts, interactive games for kids of all ages, educational experiments and amazing creative zones. Costumed characters and mascots from Houston’s professional sports teams roam the grounds and interact with children. The Wells Fargo AdventureZone features panning for gold and fishing for prizes, along with performances on The Woodlands Town Center Community Stage by local troupes such as the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, the McTeggart Irish Dancers and Rhythmic Attitudes of Houston.

Children also can get their faces painted, make one-of-a-kind hats, buy festival souvenirs and meet some of their favorite performers! Each day of the festival ends with the Festival Finale Kazoo-Dah Parade that begins and ends in the AdventureZone. Admission is $5 in advance or $7 at the door and includes every show and activity so there are no tickets, tokens or endless lines!

For more information, call 281.364.3010 or log onto www.woodlandscenter.org.

SAN JACINTO MUSEUM HONORS ALL MILITARY PERSONNEL THIS VETERANS’ DAY WEEKEND.

All military personnel (active and retired) are invited to the San Jacinto Museum and Monument for FREE admission to various exhibitions and activities, including riding the famous 489-foot elevator to the top of the Monument; viewing the digital presentation "Texas Forever!! The Battle of San Jacinto"; touring "Drawn from Experience: Landmark Maps of Texas" at the San Jacinto Museum of History, an exhibit that features more than fifty important maps depicting Texas and the Gulf Coast region that date from the 16th century to the present; and learning about Texas through a visit to the San Jacinto Museum of History, located at the base of the Monument.

This celebration will take place this Saturday, November 10 and Sunday, November 11 from 9am until 6pm both days at the San Jacinto Museum of History and the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site at One Monument Circle in La Porte, Texas. Admission is free for military personnel with ID; non-military visitors may purchase combo tickets ($12 adults and $8 children) for entrance to the monument and museum. Tickets for individual activities and discounts for seniors and tour groups are also available.

For more information, call 281.479.2421 or log onto www.sanjacinto-museum.org.

THE HOUSTON GRAND OPERA (HGO) PRESENTS THE WORLD PREMIERE OF "THE REFUGE" THIS WEEKEND.

This exciting new work presents stories from Houston's African, Central American, Indian, Mexican, Pakistani, Soviet-era Jewish and Vietnamese immigrant communities and features performers from those communities with the Studio Artists, Orchestra, Chorus and Children's Chorus of Houston Grand Opera. The performance is conducted by Patrick Summers and, for the first time, KUHF 88.7 FM will present a live radio broadcast.

"The Refuge" was commissioned by HGO under the auspices of "Song of Houston", the lead project for HGOco, a unique initiative designed to connect a great opera company to its community through collaboration. Poet Leah Lax interviewed hundreds of people to gather their stories of coming to Houston. With music by Prix de Rome–winning composer Christopher Theofanidis and libretto by poet Leah Lax, both Houstonians, "The Refuge" tells the stories of extraordinary journeys by people from several of Houston’s rich ethnic communities.

Created to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Wortham Theater Center, "The Refuge" celebrates all those who have chosen to call the city of Houston their home. The premiere is this Saturday, November 10 and its afternoon show is sold out, but there are still tickets, which start at $15, for the 7:30pm show. The show is 90 minutes long with no intermission.

For more information, call 713.228.6737 or log onto www.houstongrandopera.org.

TEXAS RECREATIONAL LACROSSE LEAGUE ("T-ReX LaX") IS BACK.

T-ReX Lacrosse League rekindles the spirit of the "Little Lacrosse League", the group that played in the first ever Youth Lacrosse Games in Texas -- Home and Away with Plano in 1995. As youth programs flourish in schools across the state, the goal of T-ReX LaX is to give young players an opportunity to learn and compete in an age-appropriate manner. On December 2 and 9 players will work on the fundamentals of the game in preparation for league team competition beginning on January 6, 2008. Players may also join a team once league play has begun. With top instructors from respected area coaches and players, T-ReX LaX is dedicated to meeting the needs of developing lacrosse players.

Sessions take place Sunday afternoons from 1:30 until 4pm for K-8 and the high school division plays from 4-5 pm. Players will work on skills, drills, and have the thrills of putting it together in games. Featured guest speakers will add to the education of young athletes. The final session will conclude with a raffle of lacrosse gear and tournament championship games.

The League will take place on Sundays, December 2 and 9, January 6, 13, 20 and 27 and February 3. The League is $235 and rental equipment is available on a limited basis. Each fully paid player will receive a free jersey, harrow packet with water bottle, lanyard, and sticker. All sessions are at the St. John's School fields at 2401 Claremont Drive.

For more information, call 713.850.0222, extension 264 or log onto www.creaseranch.com.

SEEK PEACE AT THE "QUAKER PEACE FESTIVAL" THIS WEEKEND.

Live Oak Friends Meeting will be holding a "Quaker Peace Festival" this Saturday, November 10, at 1318 W. 26th Street. The festival will start at 11am and end at sundown. “Goldwater: Conservative to War Abolitionist” will be presented in the morning, and in the afternoon, there will be live music, cooperative games and story telling for children, plus food (including vegan food). Many local and some national peace-oriented organizations will be represented, including Gish Creative.

Featured entertainment will be Carrie Anne and the Apotolyptics (folk/rock), Hank Woji (singer/songwriter), DRUM (African rhythms/reggae), and Cy, Von Won, & IceCe (positive hip/hop). There will also be a modern dance performance by Revolve Dance Company. A drum circle will take place under the Skyspace of Live Oak Friends Meeting house as the sun is setting and, following the drum circle, there will be a one on one break dance competition with many local talented break dancers.

The roots of Quakerism go back to the 17th century and are based in the belief that there is God in everyone. Quakers seek the truth by following Testimonies of Equality, Simplicity, Integrity, Service, and, the most famous, the Peace Testimony whereby Friends believe that war is never an acceptable solution.

The Live Oak Friends Meeting house contains the famous "Sky Space", an art installation using natural and artificial lighting by well-known Quaker artist James Turrell. It can be viewed every Friday evening half an hour before sunset. The public of all ages are invited to the "Quaker Peace Festival"; admission is free, but donations are always welcomed.

For more information, call 713.862.6685 or log onto www.friendshouston.org.

DRIVE FAMILY FRIENDLY: FAMILY FRIENDLY POLICY IN TEXAS.

The National Partnership for Women and Families recently released a report, "Expecting Better: A State-by-State Analysis of Parental Leave Programs", in which they awarded Texas a grade of F for having no programs that offered private sector employees family leave benefits, medical/maternity leave benefits, flexible sick days, at-home infant care benefits, expanded job protection for family leave, expanded job protection for medical/maternity leave, extended length of family and medical leave, and state family leave laws. Additionally, Texas does not offer state employees paid family and medical leave or extended length of family and medical leave.

While some change in these policies is happening at the federal level, many important innovations are happening at the state level across the country. The "Drive FAMILY Friendly" symposium brings together legislators of vision, family advocates, business people with experience in this realm and citizens, to discuss what the situation for work/family balance is in Texas, what it could be, the obstacles to realizing that vision, and ways around those obstacles. Parents, caretakers and other interested parties are invited to hear the views of fellow concerned Texans as well as to join in on discussions of these vital issues among Houstonians and to move toward change at a state level. The keynote speaker will be Ellen Bravo, author, longtime director of the national working families' advocacy group 9to5, and current coordinator of the MultiState Working Families Consortium.

This symposium is presented by the University of Houston Women's Studies Program and takes place next Wednesday, November 14 from 9am until 3pm at the UH Alumni/Athletics Center.

For more information and to register, call 713.743.0932 or log onto www.friendsofwomen.org.

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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 print through 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 parenting (www.freewebs.com/glowfished), marketing, historic preservation, activism, and passion-finding. 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 © 2007 Sarah Gish Designed by West of the World