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.

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Now, GO FIND FUN!

MAKE COMEDYSPORTZ PART OF YOUR HOLIDAY SEASON!

Houston's best improv troupe is doing shows all throughout this month, including a special show on Monday, December 31st for New Year's Eve! This is a great way to celebrate with your co-workers, friends and family and it's guaranteed to be clean and funny. The complete holiday schedule is: Friday, December 21st at 8pm; Saturday, December 22nd at 8pm; Friday, December 28th at 8:00pm; Saturday, December 29th at 8pm; and Monday, December 31st (New Year's Eve) at 8pm -- ending at 9:45pm, giving the audience time to get home or get to a party before the ball drops!

Founded in 1990, ComedySportz Houston consistently provides a fun, interactive, competitive improv comedy show to audiences of all ages. ComedySportz celebrates the creative human spirit, not the rants of a potty mouth. Like in sports, fouls are issued to all transgressors including loyal fanz. They welcome grandmas and bachelor parties alike! Each show pits two teams of improvisers in a battle for laughs and points vis a vis scenes, games, and songs based on audience suggestions. Victory at the ComedySportz match is awarded to the team favored by the audience. Because suggestions vary, no match is the same. Every match is live, hilarious, clean, foolproof, fast-paced and positive.

ComedySportz also hosts "CSz 4 Kidz" -- improv shows tailored just for kids on the first Saturday of every month at 4pm; the next show will be Saturday, January 5. And if you've got an inner comedian dying to get out, sign up for the ComedySportz improv workshops. The next round of beginning and advanced classes begins on Monday, January 14, 2008. Registration is ongoing, but space is limited.

The ComedySportz Arena is located at 901 Town & Country Blvd. near the intersection of the Katy Freeway (I-10 West) and the Sam Houston Tollway (Beltway 8). For more information, call 713.868.1444 or log onto www.comedysportzhouston.com.

ENJOY FREE MOVIES UNDER THE STARS.

This Friday, December 21, Rice University will host a free "Starlight Movie Night" featuring one short and one long feature on the jumbo screen at Rice Stadium. Everyone is invited to come out to the stadium with blankets, lawn chairs and refreshments (no glass containers) and sit on the field or in the stands to watch these free family movies. Free popcorn and warm apple cider will be provided as long as they last. Free parking is available at the stadium's Greenbriar Lot (entrance 13A and 13B on Greenbriar between University and Rice Blvds.) This week's movies are "A Charlie Brown Christmas" (the short) and "Polar Express" (the feature).

For more information, call 713.348.6783 or log onto www.staff.rice.edu/images/staff/cgr/Flyer_Dec07.pdf.

ENJOY BREAKFAST WITH ELMO.

The holidays have officially arrived, so gather your family and friends for an unforgettable morning. Families are invited to a delicious buffet breakfast and a visit from Elmo. You'll make memories to last a lifetime at this ultimate Houston event. Breakfast is served on Saturday, December 22 from 7:30am until 9am at the Health Museum, located at 1515 Hermann Drive at the corner of Hermann and La Branch. This breakfast has been organized in conjunction with the museum's current exhibition, "Sesame Street Presents: The Body".

Elmo will also be visiting the museum on Mondays at 2pm and 3pm (excluding Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve); on Thursdays at 3pm and 4pm; on Saturdays at noon and 2pm and on Sundays at 1:15pm and 2:15pm.

For more information, call 713.521.1515 or logo onto
www.thehealthmuseum.org.

THE KIDS ARE OUT OF SCHOOL AND IT'S TIME FOR YOUR FAMILY TO EXPLORE HOUSTON.

Houston is full of treasures so while the kids are out of school, hop in the car or even on a city bus or light rail (this is an exciting event for kids!) and explore. Here are some resources to get you started:

• My website's attraction list: www.thesummerbook.com/attractions.html
• The KUHF "Hidden Houston" reports:
  www.kuhf.org/site/PageServer?pagename=main_news_hiddenhouston
• The list of gems from "Hot Town, Cool City": www.hottowncoolcity.org

Now, get out there and have fun!

SUPPORT OUR CITY'S NEWEST NON-PROFIT, THE HOUSTON HISTORY ASSOCIATION.

The Houston History Association is an organization dedicated to linking Houstonians with their common past. It is their mission to promote Houston area history through education and to serve as a resource for existing educational institutions, historical organizations, and archival groups. They are working to document neighborhood histories, recapture the past through oral histories, and inspire all citizens of greater Houston to learn more about their diverse culture and legacy.

It is their belief that Houstonians who are conversant with their history and especially with the role their own neighborhoods have played in that history will understand how vital it is that we cooperate to protect the various aspects of our shared past. HHA has just kicked off their first membership drive and needs your help, so join us as they preserve our past and inspire our future!

For more information, log onto www.houstonhistoryassociation.org.

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

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