Desert Companion - Family 2015 by Nevada Public Radio

2015

Special Bonus Issue

BABYSIT, INC. THEY HAVE COME FOR YOUR CHILDREN

HAVE A BALL!

SPORTS LEAGUES FOR PLAYERS BIG AND SMALL

! H S A L SP S W E T, G N I H T L L E TO A D I U GAS G E R V U N I O Y D L I D W WAT E R Y A N

PREP SCHOOL Plus A RESOURCE GUIDE FOR FUN AND LEARNING ALL YEAR LONG

GET YOUR HOME READY FOR SUMMER AND BEYOND

EDiTOR’S Note

raise ’em right

arentology is all the rage right now. Parentology? Yeah, you know, our accumulated mass of codified wisdom on the art, science and craft of parenting. It seems not a week goes by that there isn’t some new book or study touting a magic formula for properly forging the souls of our kids. And these days, you can shop for those parenting styles as easily as you would socks. Want to dry-farm a crop of math and music prodigies? Try the Tiger Mom. Want to raise selfsufficient kiddos who conveniently do their own emotional care and feeding? Try the free-range, laissez faire method that seems to work so well for the French. Are you an emotive doter who wants your kids to handspring through childhood’s oneiric fields of love? Helicopter parenting might be the thing for you! Now, I don’t presume to know which method works best — or whether even the idea of “methods” can or should be applied to the scattered, entropic joy that is raising children. But, on the other hand, I figure you can’t go wrong with a few broad planks. This can’t be too far off the mark can it?: 1) Keep the kids busy 2) Do it with a broad, brain-stretching array of activities and 3) Maybe get out of the way once in a while. That’s it! (CHILD REARING COMPLETE. FLAWLESS VICTORY.) Of course, that’s not all there is to raising a healthy, happy brood, but I suppose it’s a good launching point. And it’s only part of what you’ll find in our second annual bonus Desert Companion Family Issue — everything from a how-to piece on kick-starting your kids’ aesthetic appreciation (p. 52) to a guide to the valley’s water attractions (p. 20) to — back by popular demand! — recipes for budding gourmets to tackle in the kitchen (chant it with me, like a dark invocation: honey-apple bananwich ... honey-apple bananwich). Whether it’s dendrite-growing activities on the home front or splashy outdoor summer fun, our second annual family issue has something for everyone.

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Of course, family is about more than keeping the kids from gnawing the legs off the kitchen table. (Though sometimes, it seems, not much more.) The word family isn’t a noun so much as a verb, an unfolding story of possibility and potential — and one rich with memorative texture. Family evokes and resonates as it breathes and moves, and some of our pieces explore that liminal space — pieces such as Greg Blake Miller’s “Under the Eggshell Sky, 1975” (p. 45) a lyrical reminiscence of the sensory impressions of a Vegas boyhood, and Stacy J. Willis’ “Babysit, Inc.,” in which she checks in with a Red Cross babysitting class (p. 27). In our text-and-Twitter age of hyperconnected, digital-native teens, Stacy isn’t quite sure what to expect of the babysitting skills of Gen Z — but what she finds truly surprises her. (And I’m not just talking about the creepy baby dolls.) And we’ve got something for the parents, too: a humorous pet guide that’ll add some much-needed laughter to the process of getting your family’s first furry companion. Building a strong family will always be an inexact science, a harrowing, intrepid art. I hope our family issue plays some small part in the process Andrew Kiraly — whatever your preferred parentology. editor

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special issue

GET OUT!

Home life

Balance

11 outdoors The

27 community

45 essay Remem-

59 Resource guide

only thing missing from our picnic guide is ants

Today's babysitters are well-trained, diaperchanging machines

brance of a magical Vegas yesteryear

Events organizations, activities and information every parent can use

16 leisure From chess

to golf, a club guide for kids 20 water world!

From mild to wild, here are the Vegas water attractions worth splashing about

34 planning Get your

car, grill, pool and more ready for summer fun 38 Cooking Turn your

kids into little foodies with these easy and fun recipes

48 education These

The Guide

gardens grow curiosity and character 52 art How to give your kids a brush with aesthetic curiosity

on the cover Model: Kody Photography Jerry Metellus styling Christie Moeller

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2015

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Mission Statement Desert Companion is the premier city magazine that celebrates the pursuits, passions and aspirations of Southern Nevadans. With awardwinning lifestyle journalism and design, Desert Companion does more than inform and entertain. We spark dialogue, engage people and define the spirit of the Las Vegas Valley.

Publisher Melanie Cannon Associate Publisher Christine Kiely Editor Andrew Kiraly Art Director Christopher Smith deputy editor Scott Dickensheets senior designer Scott Lien staff writer Heidi Kyser Graphic Designer Brent Holmes

Account executives Sharon Clifton, Parker McCoy, Favian Perez, Leigh Stinger, Noelle Tokar, Markus Van’t Hul account coordinator Kayla Hamblen Marketing manager Lisa Kelly Subscription manager Chris Bitonti Web administrator Danielle Branton traffic coordinator Karen Wong ADVERTISING COPY EDITOR Carla J. Zvosec Contributing writers Chantal Corcoran, Cybele, Mélanie Hope, Oksana Marafioti, Greg Blake Miller, Greg Thilmont, Sarah Vernetti, Stacy J. Willis, Carla J. Zvosec Contributing artists Jerry Metellus, Hernan Valencia Editorial: Andrew Kiraly, (702) 259-7856; andrew@desertcompanion.com Fax: (702) 258-5646 Advertising: Christine Kiely, (702) 259-7813; christine@desertcompanion.com Subscriptions: Chris Bitonti, (702) 259-7810; subscriptions@desertcompanion.com Website: www.desertcompanion.com Desert Companion is published 12 times a year by Nevada Public Radio, 1289 S. Torrey Pines Dr., Las Vegas, NV 89146. It is available by subscription at desertcompanion. com, or as part of Nevada Public Radio membership. It is also distributed free at select locations in the Las Vegas Valley. All photos, artwork and ad designs printed are the sole property of Desert Companion and may not be duplicated or reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. The views of Desert Companion contributing writers are not necessarily the views of Desert Companion or Nevada Public Radio. Contact Chris Bitonti for back issues, which are available for purchase for $7.95.

ISSN 2157-8389 (print) ISSN 2157-8397 (online)

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ex pl oring the c i t y to g ether to inspire ac ti ve bodies and minds

fam 15

outdoors

Basket case

with some handy expert tips and ideas. So grab a basket, invite some friends and head on out — it’s picnic time, Vegas-style.

Fresh air, sunshine and great food. The only question: Where to picnic? We’ve got plenty of suggestions to spread around

Red Spring at Calico Basin

ith its Mojave Desert setting and neon-nights reputation, Las Vegas might not bring to mind the image of a red-and-white checkered All-American picnic. But in reality, the metro area is filled with grassy parks and lovely natural areas perfect for

I L LU S T R AT I O N B R E N T H O L M E S

informal outdoor dining. Aside from the furnace blasts of high summer and the chilly snaps of deep winter, Vegas is actually a great picnic town for much of the year, particularly fall and spring Here, in no particular order, are some of the best al fresco spots in the region, along

If you want to break bread in one of Southern Nevada’s most gorgeous locales — Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area — but don’t want to commit to the 13-mile one-way road that loops through the natural wonder, the picnic area at Red Springs in Calico Basin is a fantastic alternative destination. Just a couple miles up the road off Charleston Avenue, Calico Basin is filled with vivid

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I ONLY GO TO

GET OUT

outdoors

sandstone and green flora. In addition to covered tables, Red Spring features an educational nature boardwalk that explains the history of this desert drinking fountain. Calico Basin Road Gardens Park

Because they protect my Superhero Powers.

Set in southern Summerlin with a great view of Red Rock Canyon, Gardens Park is tailored for the picnic-going crowd. With a large, well-manicured lawn area, there’s plenty of room to spread out a blanket. As a bonus, Gardens Park hosts one of the area’s Farmers Markets on Thursdays during the growing season, so you can pick up some extra produce for snacking while you’re there. 10401 Garden Park Drive Exploration Peak Park

If young kids make up a large portion of your picnic posse, mosey on over to Exploration Peak Park in Mountain’s Edge. This recreation outpost features a huge grassy swath as well as dozens of sturdy cement tables perfect for laying out your vittles. Even better, the park features an impressive Old Westthemed playground that’s irresistible to li’l pardners. 9700 South Buffalo Drive Nature Discovery Park

Al fresco eating becomes an adventure at Nature Discovery Park in Aliante. One of North Las Vegas’ premiere outdoor ar-

CHOOSE STEINBERG DIAGNOSTIC. SPECIALISTS IN PEDIATRIC IMAGING. WWW.SDMI-LV.COM FACEBOOK.COM/SDMILV 12

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Sunset Park

eas, the park is not only filled with a waterfall and lake, but is noted for its dinosaur-themed recreation area. So can kids scarf down a hot dog at one of the numerous covered table areas then run through a gargantuan Triceratops skull to boot. 2627 Nature Park Drive, North Las Vegas Sunset Regional Park

Welcome to the heavy-hitter of outdoor spaces: Sunset Regional Park. Huge and centrally located, choice parts of this much-loved amenity’s 325 acres are dedicated to shaded tables, plus there is plenty of grassy turf, too. Picnicking at Sunset Park often includes some kind of a workout such as playing in a softball game, strolling around Sunset Lake or meandering through historic sand dunes. 2601 E. Sunset Road Lorenzi Park

Lorenzi is the granddaddy of Vegas parks. One of the oldest planned outdoor spaces in the city, Lorenzi has the classic mix of attractions such as basketball and

Keep it simple! Local chef Megan Romano has prepared of plenty picnic-friendly fare, both for her own kids and customers at her local eatery, Chocolate & Spice Bakery (chocolatenspice.com). When asked what works best for picnic cuisine, she stresses simplicity. “You don’t have to overpack. A picnic becomes un-fun when you’re packing all sorts of ice and coolers,” says Romano. “You want to make it really compact. It lends to the spontaneity of things.” Romano says she favors one-pot dishes like couscous, panzanella with flank steak, baguette with dipping oils, and fruit tarts for outdoor eats. GT

Keep it safe! Whenever you plan a picnic, food safety deserves special attention. Brittney Melnick, owner of B With a Twist Catering (bwithatwistcatering.com), has extensive experience in serving food outdoors and offers guidelines for keeping things healthful. “The bacteria that cause food poisoning thrive at moderate temperatures, so it’s imperative that you keep dishes hot or cold, as the case may be,” says Melnick. Specific strategies include chilling cold items thoroughly before heading out on your picnic. Also, take-out hot food like fried chicken or barbecued beef brisket should be eaten within two hours. Melnick advises keeping beverages and chilled edibles in separate coolers, as well as storing individual food items in air-tight containers. And, of course: “Avoid mayo.” GT

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tennis courts, as well as a picturesque rose garden and the sparkling Twin Lakes. The park’s large picnic pavilions are popular places for large family and group gatherings. 3343 W. Washington Ave. Hidden Falls Park

Snug along the rugged flanks of the McCullough Hills, Henderson’s Hidden Falls Park is a gem of a place. Picnickers will find grassy areas as well as covered tables. In warmer months, splash pads make for a cool break from the picnic blanket. As a postprandial benefit, the park is located on the Amargosa Trail, so you can walk off that second scoop of potato salad. 281 West Horizon Drive, Henderson Bicentennial Park

Step back in time at Boulder City’s downtown centerpiece, Bicentennial Park. This historical outdoor space is quintes-

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sential small-town Americana, with seven acres of lush grass surrounded by municipal buildings. The park hosts art festivals, car shows, outdoor music and other events to liven up your picnicking pleasure. 999 Colorado Street, Boulder City Mt. Charleston

For a break from desert dining, Vegas picnic aficionados trek to the alpine heights of Mt. Charleston from late spring into autumn. Venturers can find developed facilities for large gatherings at numerous areas from Cathedral Rock to the Old Mill. Smaller groups often congregate on the summer slopes of Las Vegas Ski and Snowboard to snack and take a ride on the chairlift. No matter where visitors picnic, the majestic Spring Mountains National Recreation Area offers views of stunning limestone cliffs and verdant pine forests. Highway 156, northwest of Las Vegas

Floyd Lamb Park at Tule Springs

Welcome to Southern Nevada’s original picnic area: Floyd Lamb Park. Situated in the far north of the Vegas Valley, humans have been visiting Tule Springs for at least 10,000 years. Back

Better hearing. Better living. in the day, giant sloths, mammoths and other Pleistocene creatures also visited this outdoor buffet. Covered tables dot the water-filled park. Picnickers can amble around historical buildings that date from the time when Tule Springs was a mid-century dude ranch for out-of-state divorce seekers. 9200 Tule Springs Road Picnic at Downtown Grand

OK, this is Las Vegas — at least one outdoor gathering spot has to involve a hotel. And such is true at the aptly named Picnic at the Downtown Grand. While not a park where you can tote in a basket of baguette and Brie, it is a fun rooftop pool that welcomes locals. Decked out in a colorful, retro décor, a two-drink admission gives access to swimming, grassy areas, communal tables and a bar/restaurant. And, of course, private cabanas and gaming await, too. 206 N. 3rd Street final words: getting it to go

If you don’t have time to assemble a fabulous picnic smörgåsbord at home, Vegas is chock-full of takeout options. For selections of upscale sides such as marinated grilled veggies and Caprese salad, the deli cases at Whole Foods Market and Panevino (panevinolasvegas.com) are noted destinations. Looking to keep things simple but classy with a crusty baguette, some cheese and charcuterie? Fill your tote at shops like La Belle Terre Bread (labelleterrebread.com) and Valley Cheese & Wine (valleycheeseandwine.com). For vintage outdoor fare — think hot dogs, baked beans and potato chips — stops at Safeway and Vons will always be on picnic itineraries. Wow ‘em at your church group or bowling team’s annual picnic with funky fritters from O Face Doughnuts (ofacedoughnuts.com) or multi-hued macarons from Patisserie Manon (patisseriemanon.com).and fruit tarts for outdoor eats.

Gear up!

For top-notch accoutrements from elegant wicker baskets to decorative melamine dinnerware, Williams-Sonoma and Sur La Table are fully stocked. If your taste in gear trends to the more rugged and outdoorsy, REI and Bass Pro Shops have unbreakable glasses, canvas carryalls and folding tables to outfit your gathering. For simple, traditional items like folding chairs and coolers, big boxes like Target and Sears have been picnic standards for decades.

handy tips for the perfect park picnic n Dedicated picnic tables, es-

pecially covered ones, are frequently in high demand. It’s a good idea to reserve your place well in advance, especially for larger groups.

Patient-Centered Hearing Healthcare at Desert Valley Audiology • Professional - A commitment to education, training and patient care • Personal - One-on-one attention from your audiologist throughout your visit • Inviting - A comfortable office and a friendly, engaging staff • Convenient - Open Monday - Friday Schedule your hearing evaluation today and start the New Year with better hearing and better living.

n Want to sip on some wine

or beer during your al fresco event? You’ll need to get a permit. (And glass containers are never allowed.) n Check with the appropriate

Parks & Rec department for regulations and fees. clarkcountynv.gov lasvegasnevada.gov cityofnorthlasvegas.com cityofhenderson.com bcnv.org GT

Tim Hunsaker, Au.D. Doctor of Audiology

AUDIOLOGY Las Vegas 501 S. Rancho Drive, Suite A6 Las Vegas, Nevada 89106

Henderson 1701 N. Green Valley Parkway Building 8, Suite B Henderson, Nevada 89074

702-605-9133 phone 702-678-6159 fax

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sports & leisure

Left, Checkmate Tournament's casual chess club meets Fridays. Above, I9 Sports' flag football league emphasizes sportsmanship.

to and from GameWorks, where they can play favorite arcade games and enjoy being with others their age. $14, ages 13-under 20 years. Henderson Multigenerational Center, 250 S. Green Valley Parkway, 702-267-5800 or 702-267-5824

From playing chess to building self-esteem through sports, here are some activities to keep your children growing C ompiled by C arla J. Z v o sec

un, jump, socialize! Organized activities — from clubs and camps to sports leagues and game nights — are great ways to keep your kids active, engaged and meeting people. Here’s a selection of fun pursuits for kids of all ages.

FAIRY TALE FUN

MINI KICKERS SOCCER

BIKING HENDERSON

April 23-May 28, June 4-July 9, July 23-August 13 Kids dress up like princesses, hold royal tea parties and create royal projects. $31 plus $5 materials fee due first day, ages 3-7. Black Mountain Recreation Center, 599 Greenway Road, 702-267-4070; https://recreation.cityofhenderson.com

Through June 28 In this club, those who are ages 5-14 bike a minimum of 50 miles and those 15 and older bike 250 miles over a three-month period. $15, ages 5-plus. Outdoor Recreation Center, 105 W. Basic Road, 702-267-4060, https://recreation.cityofhenderson.com

GAMEWORKS

April 15-May 20 Mini Kickers focuses on the physical, emotional and social needs of kids participating in their first sports program (with separate groups for ages 2-3 and 4-6). Each child receives a jersey, shorts and ball. $89, ages 2-4 and 4-6. Reunion Trails Park multipurpose field 1a, 44 Chapala Drive, 702-267-5840; https:// recreation.cityofhenderson.com

July 18, Registration ends July 17 Designed for teens with disabilities, this social club provides therapeutic recreation and a positive atmosphere — kids get two-hour game cards and transportation

Eight sessions between April 20 and August 14 This music and movement program,

HENDERSON

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musikidz

C H E S S C L U B : P R E R A P H O T O G R A P H Y ; f lag f ootball : i 9 sports

Sign those kids up!

GREENSPUN TEEN KAMP

Nine sessions between June 8 and August 7 Mentoring and leadership activities to help preteens and teens develop self-confidence and good decision-making skills. Each themed week provides unique activities, field trips and recreation. $110, ages 12-16 years. Hank Greenspun Junior High School, 140 N. Valle Verde, https://recreation.cityofhenderson.com

4070; https://recreation.cityof henderson.com PEE WEE ALL-STARS ATHLETES

featuring Kindermusik, emphasizes musical and social skills through instrument exploration, creative movement and peer interaction. $31, ages 1 to under-4 years (must be accompanied by parent or guardian). Meeting Room B at Black Mountain Recreation Center, 599 Greenway Road, 702-267-

Insta

/CITYOFLASVEGAS

PLAYGROUND CREATION

PEE WEE NEIGHBORHOOD

April 21-May 26, June 2-July 7 Each week participants create a new arts-and-crafts project. $36 plus $16 supplies fee due first day, ages 3-7 (must be accompanied by parent or guardian) and 5-11 years. Art Room at Henderson Multigenerational Center, 250 S. Green Valley Parkway, 702-267-5800 or 702-267-5824

April 23-May 14, May 21-June 11 and June 18-July 9 This indoor program introduces kids to favorite childhood games, including freeze tag, Red Rover, beach-ball vol-

May 1-29, June 1-30, July 1-31 and August 3-31 Includes singles and doubles games. If

TABLE TENNIS

Find out all you need to know for a great summer in your city! www.lasvegasparksandrec.com or call us at (702) 229-PLAY (7529)

Sports Swim Lessons Summer Camps Dancing Cooking Gardening Birthday Celebrations Family Reunions Dog Parks Friendships More.....

Six sessions between April 20 and August 13. Registation through April 27 During four mornings of play, this program introduces kids to track, tennis, basketball and soccer, along with such neighborhood games as hopscotch and red light/green light. Snack break is included. $40, ages 3-under 7 years. Discovery Park multipurpose field, 2011 Paseo Verde Parkway, 702-267-5840

leyball and kickball. This encourages motor-skills development, socialization and sportsmanship. Snack break is included. $40, ages 3-7 years. Silver Springs Recreation Center, 1951 Silver Springs Parkway, 702-267-5720; https:// recreation.cityof henderson.com

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players exceed available tables, rotating elimination matches apply. One table is always assigned to beginners. Free, ages 18-plus. Valley View Recreation Center, 500 Harris St., 702-267-4060; https://recreation.cityof henderson.com

Hole-in-one fun: Sticks for Kids teaches golf to youth ages 6-17.

NORTH LAS VEGAS

STICKS FOR KIDS

Mon-Sun, 6a-6p Registration ongoing Introduces youth to physical activity, environmental awareness and a chance to learn golf. The Sticks for Kids program provides a set of clubs while learning to play. Free, ages 6-17; see the pro shop staff for more information. Municipal Par 3 Golf Course, 324 E. Brooks Ave., 702-633-1833

LAS VEGAS

BATTERIES INCLUDED TEEN COUNCIL

MAY 5, 4-5p The City of Las Vegas, Clark County School District and Nevada Partners are collaborating to provide teens with afterschool educational activities, college tours and retreats focused on leadership, life skills, community service and preparing for college. Batteries Included has various teen council meeting locations available throughout the city. Free, ages 13-18. Batteries Included office, 495 S. Main St., Fifth Floor, 702-229-2330; lasvegasnevada.gov/batteriesincluded BOXING AND CARDIO TRAINING

Programs beginning May 5 These beginning and intermediate recreational programs promote physical fitness, self-esteem and a healthy life-

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Pedal power: The Flower Power Bike Ride is free for all ages.

style through the sport of boxing. All participants must have a signed waiver. $25, ages 7-17 years. Chuck Minker Sports Complex, 275 N. Mojave Road, 702-229-6563

st i c k s f or k i d s a n d f lo w er po w er r i d e : c i ty o f L as V egas

Checkmate Tournament’s Chess Tournaments

Ongoing, Fri., Sat. 6-9p No registration required Chess can help improve grades, personal behavior and build confidence. This casual chess club not only teaches new players the rules, it allows the more experienced to practice their skills. Group and individual lessons available for advanced players. Also, there’s pizza. $20/ night or $60 for four nights; you can mix and match the nights your child attends. Las Vegas Sports Park (Fri.), 1400 N. Rampart Blvd. and Brooklyn Bagel Deli (Sat.), 10604 S. Eastern Ave. # C, 702-885-2970; friday@lasvegaschessforkids.com

having fun. Practices are held on game days before game. $140 if paid before Aug. 21; $155 if paid after Aug. 21, ages 4-12 as of Nov. 2, 2015. Multi-child discount of $5 applies in same season. Southern Highlands Preparatory School, 11500 Southern Highlands Parkway, 702-7635608; i9sports.com/ProgramDirector/ Summerlin-Las-Vegas-Henderson Flower Power Bike the Northwest Ride

April 24, 4:30p Dress yourself and decorate your bike to suit the theme for this casual three-mile family ride. Helmets and a signed waiver required for all riders. Event includes a pre-ride safety check and post-ride cool down. Free water and snacks provided while supplies last. Free, all ages. Cimarron Rose Community Center, 5591 N. Cimarron Road, 702-229-1607

FALL FLAG FOOTBALL LEAGUE

PARALYMPIC SPORTS CLUB LAS VEGAS

September 9-October. 28, Wednesdays. Registration through August 21 Presented by i9 Sports, this six-week boys and girls league aims to help kids succeed in life through sports, and emphasizes safety, sportsmanship and

Various dates and times. Register at 702-229-4796 In conjunction with CCSD, this program is designed for children and young adults with physical disabilities. They get training in such sports as wheelchair basketball, hand-cycling

and more, plus competitions throughout Southern Nevada. For grades 1-12. Various locations; for more information, email jfoster@lasvegasnevada.gov SUMMER FLAG FOOTBALL LEAGUE

June 6-July 18, Sat. 8A-11A Registration through May 15 This six-week boys and girls league — presented by i9 Sports — helps kids succeed in life through sports, and emphasizes safety, sportsmanship and fun. Practices are held on game days prior to game. $119 if paid before April 17; $139 if paid before May 15; and $159 if paid after May 15, ages 11-16 as of July 7, 2015. Multi-child discount of $5 applies in same season. Mountain’s Edge Regional Park, 7929 W. Mountains Edge Parkway, 702-763-5608; i9sports.com/Prog ram Director/Summerlin-Las-Vegas-Henderson YOUTH BASKETBALL LEAGUE

Begins June 13 Kids participate in hour-long games of basketball to develop their ball-handling skills, enjoy the camaraderie of being part of a team and learn sportsmanship. $65, ages 9-14 years. Chuck Minker Sports Complex, 275 N. Mojave Road, 702-229-6563

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WET BEHIND THE EARS water world!

... and the arms, legs and everywhere else. Your kids will make a splash this summer with our guide to all things wet, watery and wild in Vegas By Sarah Vernetti Photo By Jerry Metellus

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Streams and screams: Wet ’n’ Wild’s Splash Island

s the temperature begins to rise and the blazing Las Vegas sun beats down, there’s a good chance you’ll start daydreaming about California beaches and Wisconsin lakes. But don’t give up on Southern Nevada too quickly: The area has plenty of water-based adventures for families seeking a fun way to cool off. Perhaps the best way to beat the heat during spring and summer is with a trip to one of the area’s water parks. Recently revived classic Wet ’n’ Wild (7055 S. Fort Apache Road, wetnwildlasvegas.com) is open on the weekends during April

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and May before launching into their full summer schedule in June. This season, the water park will introduce a new attraction called Slideboarding, which is like a waterslide/bobsled/video game combination. Wet ’n’ Wild is also home to old favorites like a large wave pool, several twisty water slides, and thrilling rides like Tornado and Hoover Half Pipe. Don’t leave before you’ve challenged the kids to a race down Desert Racers, a sideby-side slide that will determine who’s the fastest in your family. In Henderson, Cowabunga Bay (900 Galleria Drive, cowabungabay.com/ lasvegas) opened for the 2015 season on March 28. Highlights of this water park

Clockwise from upper left: Mandalay Bay’s Shark Reef; Desert Breeze park; Springs Preserve; Mirage dolphin habitat

include the lazy river and the Surf-ARama wave pool. Families with younger kids will want to check out the Cowabunga Kids Cove, which includes small slides and water features that won’t overwhelm toddlers and hesitant swimmers. Meanwhile, thrill-seekers can try a new attraction, Wild Surf, which drops riders into a huge wave from a height

of 60 feet. Another new ride for the 2015 season is Beach Blanket Bonzai, a fast-moving water slide that features sharp turns, dips, and drops. Too big-ticket for you? For a budget-friendly water-based break, visit one of Southern Nevada’s public pools. Clark County’s Desert Breeze Aquatic Facility (8275 W. Spring Mountain Road, 702-455-7798) has indoor and outdoor pools. The indoor pool is perfect for lap swimming or for family fun without the scorching sun. The outdoor pool features a shallow, beach entry area that is ideal for youngsters, plus two water slides and a play structure. The outdoor pool opens for the season on May 23. The City of North Las Vegas’ Silver

Mesa Recreation Center (4025 Allen Lane, 702-633-2550) is home to an outdoor pool, which features a water slide, lap-swimming lanes, and plenty of room for North Las Vegans to splash around. Meanwhile, Summerlin residents can visit the pleasant Willows Pool (2775 Desert Marigold Lane, summerlink. com/pools), which offers lots of seating in the shade, two water slides, and a shallow area that the little ones will love. The pool is only open to Summerlin residents and their guests, so now is the time to rekindle those friendships with your Summerlin acquaintances. If the kids are looking to improve their swimming skills, consider signing them up for lessons. Water Wings Swim School (waterwingsswimschool. com) has several locations around the

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valley and offers both group and private lessons. Plus, swim students have the chance to participate in swim meets, and parents can drop off the kids for special night out events for the parents. If you’re looking to include some playground time in your quest to keep cool, one of Las Vegas’ many splash pads will fit the bill. In the Northwest, families can visit the whimsical Centennial Hills Park (7101 N. Buffalo Drive, 702-229-6718), which offers two water play areas, in addition to a playground, sand volleyball courts, picnic areas, and a jogging path. At Aliante Nature Discovery Park in North Las Vegas (2600 Nature Park Drive, 702-633-2418), kids can run through the water feature and then watch the ducks that hang out in the adjacent pond. Another popular park in North Las Vegas is Craig Ranch

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Regional Park (628 W. Craig Road, 702-633-1171), which features two playgrounds, four huge slides, a skate park, and a splash pad. On the southwest side of town, families will want to visit Exploration Park (9275 S. Buffalo Drive, 702-8985777), which features a unique, western-themed playground. The Wild West motif is carried over to the park’s splash pad, which is lined by shaded picnic tables, a perk for parents. If Fido wants to join the fun, take him to Heritage Park in Henderson (350 E. Racetrack Road, 702-267-4230), which is home to a splash pad that is specifically designed for dogs. If you’d rather glide across the top of the water than dive right in, head to Boulder City and embark on a Lake Mead Cruise (490 Horsepower Cove Road, lakemeadcruises.com). Sit on the boat’s upper deck and take in the views

(and plenty of Vitamin D), or head inside and enjoy some shade and a snack. A tour guide narrates the 90-minute midday sightseeing cruise. Along the way, passengers will have plenty of opportunities to take photos of the infamous bathtub ring and historic Hoover Dam. The cruises leave from the Lake Mead Cruises landing, which is located minutes from Highway 93, inside the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. Families with pre-teens and teens can visit Lake Las Vegas (lakelasvegas.com) and give stand-up paddle boarding a whirl. Rental paddle boards are available from Paddle to the Core (suplv.com), located at the Westin Lake Las Vegas (101 Montelago Blvd., westinlakelasvegas.com). Take your paddle board and explore on your own, or sign up for one of Paddle to the Core’s guided tours. If you’re in the mood to extend your Lake

Las Vegas excursion, book a staycation at the family-friendly Westin for lake access, pool time, and on-site dining. If your kids have been struck by Frozen fever, cool off during the warm months with a trip to the ice rink. The Fiesta Rancho SoBe Ice Arena (2400 N. Rancho Drive, fiestarancho.sclv.com) is open year-round. Skates are available to rent, or bring your own and show off your double axel. Sign up for group or private lessons if the kids are hoping to perfect their figure skating or hockey skills. Shark Reef Aquarium at Mandalay Bay (3950 Las Vegas Blvd. S., sharkreef. com) offers families the chance to mellow out in the dimly lit tranquility of the ocean. Sea creatures both big and small glide by as visitors make their way through the aquarium’s lush interior. Check out the unique-looking sawfish and the numerous sharks that inhabit the aquarium’s massive Shipwreck Tank. Don’t forget to say hi to the Komodo Dragon and the endangered Green Sea Turtle, two highlights of the Shark Reef that the kids won’t want to miss. For further animal-themed fun on the Strip, take the family to Siegfried and Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat at the Mirage (3400 S. Las Vegas Blvd., mirage.com), where you can watch the dolphins swim and play. View them from your spot next to their pool or walk down the ramp and look through the windows for a fish-eye view of these beautiful creatures. And then there’s the quintessential water-in-the-desert activity: a visit to Springs Preserve (333 S. Valley Blvd., springspreserve.org). Here, families can learn about the springs that once brought settlers to the area, experience the power of a flash flood, and find out how plants and animals survive in the parched Mojave Desert. Themed summer camps are available for children ages 6 to 12, where they will explore the preserve, learn about animals, make crafts, and enjoy weekly pool-time at the YMCA. Southern Nevada may be a desert, but there are plenty of aquatic activities — from educational to interactive — that are sure to “wet” their appetites this summer.

OFF

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CARPET

TILE & GROUT

HARDWOOD

UPHOLSTERY

Cannot be used for water restoration services. Must present promo code at time of service. Only Stanley Steemer Carpet Cleaning has been Certified asthma & allergy friendly.™ ASTHMA & ALLERGY FRIENDLY and ASTHMA & ALLERGY FRIENDLY LOGO are Certification Marks and Trademarks of ALLERGY STANDARDS LIMITED. The ASTHMA AND ALLERGY FOUNDATION OF AMERICA is a Registered Trademark of AAFA. Combined living areas, L-shaped rooms and rooms over 300 sq. ft. are considered 2 areas. Baths, halls, large walk-in closets and area rugs are priced separately. Offer does not include protector. Offer not applicable on natural stone flooring. Offer not applicable to certain types of wood flooring. Sectional sofas may not be separated. Sofas over 7 ft. and certain fabrics may incur additional charges. Offer not applicable to leather furniture. Offer does not include protector. D E S E R T C O M PA N I O N FA M I LY

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portr ai ts of the pl ac e s where we l i ve, work and p l ay

fam 15

community

Babysit, Inc. Marketing plans? Competitive pricing? Diversity training? No kidding. Today’s babysitting classes teach would-be sitrepreneurs much more than how to properly cradle an infant B y S ta c y J. W i l l i s

ylee Brahma is 11 years old with a long brunette braid down her back and a rubber bracelet on her wrist that reads, “RESPECT.” She’s quick to pop out of her chair at the conference room table and shoot a hand into the air: I know the answer! I got this! Call on me! We’re at an all-day babysitting class at the Red Cross of Southern Nevada on a Saturday, learning the basics of child care that, it turns out, are not so basic anymore. Suffice it to say, I’m not jumping out of my chair with the answers. When I babysat eons ago, it went something like this: The neighbor called and I went over to her house to watch her kids jump on the furniture while I talked on the phone and ate everything in the fridge. Five hours later, I got a ten-spot and a ride home. Today’s babysitting students are working their way through a 180-page manual that includes information on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, respecting religious, gender and income diversity, recognizing child abuse, and building a resumé. “It’s a good way to learn about business,” Kylee pops out of her chair again to tell me. “Education is everything.” Her can-do attitude fits perfectly into the precocious entrepreneurial business spirit right now, and her current field —

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babysitting — is an old-but-hot-again commodity. To wit: a 15-year-old Manhattan girl recently made headlines for earning six figures per year hooking up nannies with families through her start-up, Nannies by Noa, and websites like Care.com, Sittercity.com and Urbansitter.com are pumping out ads and, in some cases, stock shares. Babysitting, it turns out, is big business. That’s why Red Cross instructor Barbara Morgan, who’s been teaching babysitting for 27 years, spends a good chunk of the morning telling a table of 11- and 12-year-olds about marketing, business cards, the power of a good handshake, price negotiation, and “how to close the deal.” Before we get to minor bailiwicks like learning how to change a diaper, we’re brainstorming about where to place fliers (churches, parents’ offices), analyzing the power of babysitter clubs (crowdsourcing) and designing apprenticeships (learning on the job as a paid “mother’s helper”). “I grew up babysitting a zillion kids in my family for free,” Morgan says. She’s got the silver hair and authoritative, matterof-fact tone to prove it. “I said, ‘Next time, I’m getting paid for this.’” Morgan also raised a son. “Babysitting is not a chore you can just assign to kids,” she continues. “This is a job and they should be paid the same as you would pay an adult.” She advises her students that the minimum rate should be $10 an hour for the first two children, plus $1 per each additional child. A quick glance through local sitters on Care.com shows $10-$15 an hour is a common rate. But what these students will have that many others don’t is a paragraph on their resumé that shows they took the Red Cross Babysitting Class — a monthly class that has evolved significantly over 30 years. The local chapter charges $75 for the full-day class, which about 200 students a year take. And while everyone wants to learn how to compete in the babysitting market, this class has been around for three decades because it teaches the most important skill: how to take care of babies. “It means a lot to see that they’ve taken the Red Cross class,” says Morgan. “That gets respect.”

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Today’s babysitting students are working their way through a 180-page manual that includes information on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, respecting diversity, recognizing child abuse, and building a resume. ‘This thing scares me’

he babies are rubber and lifelike, and they’re wearing diapers and onesies. They’re racially diverse: white, black, brown; and eerily sexless: no genitals here. Each student walks across the room and picks a baby of his or her own — Morgan doesn’t want to refer to them as “dolls” because for the remainder of the day, we’re assuming they’re real. Upbeat market confidence gives way to palpable fear. Oscar Green, a sharp 11-year-old with glasses who described himself to the group as someone who “likes to tell stories and make people laugh,” silently carries his rubber baby waaay out in front of him like a tray full of fragile stemware. When he sits down, he’s still holding it above the table in front him. Kylee — whose joie de vivre has been bubbling over for hours, sits down next to me with her rubber baby and says quietly, “Oh jeez.” She takes a look at the baby’s vacant eyes and permanently puckered mouth and quickly turns away. “This thing scares me. Oh my gosh.” Morgan selects a baby named Clara (for Clara Barton, the founder of the Red Cross) and gives us our first lesson: how to hold an infant. Of utmost importance, Morgan emphasizes, is supporting the baby’s neck and being careful with its head. Student Amelia Cuomo, 12, is hanging on Morgan’s words when Morgan purposely lets her baby’s head thump on the table. Amelia jumps — but instinctively pulls her baby into her chest. “Did you hear that?” Morgan says. “I don’t ever want to hear the sound of a baby’s head thumping on the table for the rest of the day. Everybody clear?” Yes, yes, yes. Gone are the hard-nosed discussions of cost negotiations, of business cards and fliers. We’re talking about fragile baby skulls here. So we watch a short video about scooping the baby up, supporting its neck and head, and bringing it against

our chests. We learn to lift the baby’s inside arm so that it won’t be trapped under its body. Then, we practice. Everybody’s doing pretty well — an arm lock here or there, a wobbly head or two, and an unclaimed head thump. “It’s okay, this is what we practice for,” Morgan says. “That’s why we’re here. That’s why we don’t start with real babies.” She helps each student get it right. What strikes me as I look around the group is how genuine these future babysitters are — they’re good kids, they’re really listening, really taking it all in. I can’t peg a fridge-excavator or a phone-chatter in the group. Morgan moves on. We watch a video about bottle-feeding and burping. We’re taught that the parents usually will have pre-made the bottles and given instructions. In fact, the Red Cross provides students with a form they can use to write special instructions on when they meet the parents. Students also get a handbook and a DVD — plenty of resources for at-home study, and I can imagine some students poring over the material at home for hours to hone their competitive edge in the marketplace. Next, she shows us how an infant takes a spoon into its mouth — “You don’t need to force it in there, just get it over the lip. The baby is going to push the food back out with his or her tongue, and then you scoop it back in.” To the surprise and fascination of all, particularly me, she demonstrates on herself: She pretends to be an infant, and when she gets the spoon to her lips, she pushes it out with her tongue, then re-scoops. “It’s just the way they do it. So practice.” Soon, everybody’s practicing the lip-scoop on their vacant-eyed babies, and everything seems all right. Amelia stands up with her baby on her hip. Kylee has her burping cloth ready, and Oscar is carefully tucking his baby’s arm in as he cradles it.

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Hungry faces, fragile heads

Your smart wants to party.

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dose” on my phone. I put the phone away. verything’s fine, that is, until it’s time Focus.) for a bathroom break, and they dePlus, she says, cell phones are a good cide to leave their babies with me to thing — in the right hands. “The Red babysit. I’m not too happy about it — did Cross teaches them not to use them for I mention I haven’t raised children? — socializing or zooming around on the and suddenly I’m sitting in a big empty Internet, but to keep the phone where room with a bevy of babies who have per- they could easily call for help.” manently hungry faces and fragile heads. Despite everything I’ve just learned, Wipe that baby clean need help,” Oscar says. A onesie is bamy flight-or-flight mechanism trigsically a really cute straitjacket, and gers a flood of babysitting flashbacks. his baby is really stuck inside a tight Should I make scrambled eggs? That used to work for both me and whimper- one when it’s time for diaper-changing. “Bend his knees,” Kylee advises, her ing children, and it was the only thing I knew how to cook. (One of my babysit- once-scary baby laid in front of her in full diaper-changing mode. But Oscar’s tees grew up to be a chef.) Or maybe I should call a friend. Or a few friends. rubber baby’s knees don’t bend so well, That got me in whole lot of trouble once, and Oscar is being careful not to hurt it. With encouragement, he manages to because my friends showed up at the free it from the onesie. window wearing pantyhose over their “A baby can go through 10 to 12 diaheads in an attempt to scare me, but pers a day,” Morgan tells them. Amelia’s instead thoroughly traumatized the eyes grow huge — 12? — and she looks small children. (I made scrambled eggs at her baby, whom she’s named Oliver, immediately!) Or maybe I should check with some amazement. “I’ve never even out the selection of Betamax and VHS tapes. Or eat some Flintstones vitamins. changed a diaper,” she says quietly. The babies are already wearing diOr ramble through the parents’ dresser apers, and so the kids begin the meticdrawers? ulous un-diapering process, with Red I snap out of my delinquent fog when Cross-recommended latex gloves on. Morgan and the students return. A Morgan teaches them how to wipe a quick survey of the zombie babies shows baby clean, put the baby-wipe inside the everybody’s stable, if still not breathing. But how is it that kids today, I wonder, dirty diaper, and diaper the baby in a fresh diaper, careful to make the diaper handle the responsibility of babysitting when they have a million times more di- tight enough but not too tight, and then wrap their gloves and trash in a sanitary versions in their cell phones and laptops manner. She checks every baby one by than I ever did? “Sure, there are a lot of distractions — one, telling some that the diaper needs smartphones and TVs and iPads and ev- to be higher, and others that the leg holes need to be pulled tighter. Everyery imaginable device, but these kids are learning not only how to care for small- one does another round of un-diapering er children, but how to be responsible,” and diapering. “Good job,” Morgan says to the group. Morgan says, eyeing me skeptically. I think she has me pinned: easily distract- “We’re getting more comfortable and confident.” ed vitamin-chomper. Case in point: Kylee. By the end of “They’re learning how to be leaders, the class, she’s come to terms with the how to communicate with parents and get information down on paper for ref- rubber baby with the zombie eyes that erence, how to listen to directions and, initially freaked her out. She’s named it maybe most importantly, how to stay fo- Piper, and she’s not only not afraid of it, she’s cradling it like a true pro. cused on the children at all times.” (I’m She leans over to me and says again, listening, but realize I’m also Googling “long-term effects of Flintstones over- “Education is everything.”

“I

Thursday, May 28, 2015 | 6 p.m. The Venetian Las Vegas Casino, Hotel & Resort COCKTAILS | SILENT & LIVE AUCTION DINNER & DANCING

1501-001

Since 1991 Boys Town Nevada has been providing life-changing services to traumatized children and families through a continuum of residential and community based programs. 100% of the support from this event will go directly to making a difference in the lives of nearly 2,000 children and youth in our community.

Purchase Tickets at

702-642-7070 X 109 | BOYSTOWN.ORG/NEVADA

Home life

humor

SO, YOU ARE YOU SURE? HOW MANY CHILDREN DO YOU HAVE? WANT TO GET YOUR KID A PET ... NO

Sea monkeys

Don’t know

YES

one

By Andrew Kiraly & Scott Dickensheets

CAN YOU FOLLOW THIS LINE?

two

BATHTUB YOU

YES

AREN’T USING? Teacup narwhal!

Pretty long

A little shorter

DO YOU WANT TO TEACH YOUR CHILD THE

ONLY SLIGHTLY MORE INTERESTING THAN STARING AT A BOWL OF WATER? YES

So-so

VALUE OF COMPASSION AND RESPONSIBILITY?

FISH

IS YOUR CHILD MESSY?

What was the Question again?

WHAT’S YOUR CHILD’S ATTENTION SPAN?

DO YOU WANT TO TEACH YOUR CHILD TO PROSPER

Pretty short

ROOMBA

DO YOU FORESEE A FUTURE FOR

HAS YOUR DAUGHTER BEGGED FOR

39-YEAR-OLD BACHELOR WHO’S

A STAR WARS FAN FICTION WEBSITE?

Box of poop

REALISTIC OPTION, BUT YOU NO

Continuous temptation to eat the family pet

monkey

A Lizard

Pooping outside the box

A lizard

bloodhound

A HORSEY, BUT IT’S JUST NOT A

THE COMMENTS MODERATOR FOR

Bacon-wrapped cow

Hamst … too late, it died

Guinea pig

YOUR CHILD IN WHICH HE’S A

YES

Measured in milliseconds

IN POLITICS, REAL ESTATE OR TALENT-MANAGEMENT?

Any reptile

DOES YOUR CHILD ENJOY EXPERIENCES Horse

YES

DOG

cat

Shetland pony

DO YOU HAVE A

Chicken Nonstop bocking

DON’T WANT TO BREAK YOUR LITTLE GIRL’S HEART, AND SO YOU Goat

JUST CAN’T WAIT TO SURPRISE HER WITH HER DREAM GIFT: HER VERY OWN ASIAN PYGMY UNICORN!

YES

Dragon Trails of garbage liberated from trash cans

Frequent carrot disappearances; colored eggs everywhere

Rabbit

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WHAT WILL YOU TOLERATE IN YOUR HOME? Always leaving at the end of March

None of that crap

Lamb

Origami marmoset

Sulfurous smell, faint screaming from Gates of Hell

Odor of belched gerbil Annoyingly adorable tinkling sound

UNICORN

cerberus

Snake

Odor of singed hobbit

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Learn more at HendersonSchool.com. +1-702-818-2100

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planning

Ready, prep, go! Summer’s just around the corner. We tapped local experts for tips on getting your car, pool, patio and more in shape for the hot months ahead b y c h a n ta l c o r c o r a n Yard: a sprinkle of prevention

n the summertime, even a small patch of lush grass beneath your toes can be worth all the effort that maintaining a sprinkler system in the desert requires. But our hard water and wildly fluctuating temperatures wreak havoc on our irrigation systems, explains Joseph Carpenter of Vegas Sprinkler Specialists. He suggests a slate of preseason troubleshooting. Look before you leak. First, open your valve boxes to check for water and rusting of corroding of wiring. Next, manually test sprinklers, watching them go on and off as each station is running. Look for puddling or pooling. Every couple of months — before an outrageous water bill shows up in your box — check for leaks by inspecting the main meter to the house. It’s in the sidewalk at the front of your yard. Use a set of needle-nose pliers to open the box and peek at the micro-meter. If the red (or white) triangle in the center of the dial is spinning, and your water isn’t running, you’ve got yourself a leak. Damage control. If you’re the handy sort, you might be tempted to tackle any necessary repairs yourself. Fine, but just be aware that sprinkler parts are super-finicky. “When you take a valve apart, it has to go back together in a very precise way,” says Carpenter. In fact, he credits much of his business to the damage caused by homeowners or inexperienced landscapers; he usually gets called when the prob-

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lem goes from bad to worse. “I have to fix all the stuff they break,” he says. Know who and when. Whatever you do, though, don’t call a plumber. Plumbers don’t do irrigation, just like irrigation specialists don’t do toilets. (By the way, it’ll cost you upwards of around $70 to have a pro do your preseason checkup. More if things get complicated.) Finally, don’t water at night, when grass will mold, or in the middle of the day, when plants will boil and grass will burn. Carpenter suggests two 30-minute dousings per day, just before sunrise and sunset. Grill: Scour hour

othing says summer like the smell of backyard barbecue. Whether it’s burgers or ribs or a colorful medley fresh from the garden, the grill is a favorite summer gathering spot. For the best eats, Fred Chase of Back 2 New, The BBQ Cleaner recommends a thorough

grill scouring every six months, to avoid serving up a platter full of carcinogens that develop from charred food built-up on your barbecue grates. (To give grills a total makeover, Chase — who is more than happy to do the rigorous elbow work for you — likes to paint the interior covers with a 1200-degree paint.) Skrill that grill. Throughout the season, keep a wire brush handy to routinely scrub heated grates. And clean the drip tray (which slides in and out just like the crumb tray in your toaster) once a month, to avoid dangerous and carcinogenic grease fires that can damage the grill, as well as your health. Tastemakers. Your grandpa was wrong when he told you that a dirty grill makes for a more savory meat. Better to rely on ceramic briquettes, lava rocks or flavor bars, all of which are designed to enhance taste by catching grease droppings and redistributing flavor. (That said, the

i l lu st r at i o n b r e n t h o l m e s

CHECK OUT WHAT’S COMING UP scorched remnants of various varmints that like to hide out beneath barbecue burners can add a certain tang to your dishes. Chase has come across everything from rabbits and rats to snakes and scorpions, some warm-bodied and feisty, others fried to a crisp, in the more than 400 grills he’s cleaned.) All shined and wired up. Of course, you’ll want to shine things up with a stainless steel polish before party time. And maybe pick up the latest gadget that takes the guesswork out of grilling, like a smartphone app that connects to a digital meat thermostat, alerting you when it’s time to put down your beer and pick up those tongs.

ing system annually — this is something people tend to overlook, but, as with the units that cool our homes, Nevada’s extreme temps are demanding on the AC systems in our cars. Clinic hours. If all of this feels a bit overwhelming, Buritica suggests you find a clinic, like the one his shop offers, to help customers familiarize themselves with their vehicles. Or, “A day or two before you go on a road trip, stop by and we can look at the vehicle and tell you exactly what’s going on, before you get stranded in the middle of Death Valley.” Yikes!

Car: Getting level-headed

hatever direction you road-trip this summer, you don’t want to break down in the heat of the desert. Nor do you want to waste your vacation budget on inflated emergency car servicing from an auto mechanic you don’t know and can’t trust. That’s why it’s important to do a pre-road inspection, says Mauricio Buritica of CARS Compete Automotive Repair Specialists. Do it in the morning, while the vehicle is still cold, to avoid being dangerously burned by the coolant system. Liquid assets. With the car off, open the hood and check the oil. Check the power steering. Check the coolant — when you open the expansion cap, do it slowly to allow any residual pressure to escape slowly. Check the belt for hairline cracks, discoloration or missing pieces. “And make sure your battery connections aren’t growing any scientific experiments,” he says. Batteries can get corroded; also maintenance batteries (versus maintenance-free batteries) should be kept hydrated by adding distilled water occasionally. Whatever you do, don’t put the wrong fuel in your car. Seems obvious, but Buritica is seeing more and more of this. “Putting diesel fuel in a gas car or putting gas in a diesel car — because it’s new to everybody, since many of the manufacturers are coming out with their own turbo diesel injection cars.” Under pressure. Checking tire pressure regularly is imperative, too, for gas mileage and for safety on the freeway. It’s also important to check your air condition-

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Pool: School of hard water

efore the family suits up for splishing and splashing this summer, it’s important to make sure the pool is ready for you. A solid approach. You might want to drain the pool. According to Bill Sawdey of Personalized Pool Service, your water should be changed every three to five years, simply because Vegas water is so hard and, over time, pool water only gets harder. “As the water evaporates, the solids stay behind, thus the solids climb, and you tend to use more chemicals,” he explains. He likes to drain his clients’ pools when they reach 3,000 (solid) parts per million. Once it’s drained, hose down the plasters to remove any residual solids, before refilling and sending the kids in. Chemical calendar. To best manage chemicals, Sawdey recommends you choose a certain day each week for testing and adding. “If you bounce around, you’ll never get a good balance and you’ll end up using too much in chemicals,” he says. Cover charge. Of course, a solar cover is important to reduce evaporation and curb your water bill, but it’s also crucial to let your pool breathe — three to four days per week is optimal, according to Sawdey. “A lot of people put the cover on and turn their back on the pool, and the water can heat up to a point where, if you don’t maintain the chems, you’ll pull the cover off at party time, only to be embarrassed by algae.” Getting salty. There’s a reason that saltwater pools are the latest rage. A salt-

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water generator virtually eliminates all the tiresome business of maintaining a pool. No more tablets, liquid or shocking. “Every 90 days, you merely dip your salt cell into a solution of muriatic acid and water, brush it off, put it back in and you’re good to go,” says Sawdey. The system generates its own chlorine from the added salt, so all you have to maintain is the proper pH. Already about 15 percent of Sawdey’s clients have made the switch, which, at around $3,000 installed, is admittedly expensive. But if you’ve got room in the family budget, it’s well worth it. He says, “You will both feel and smell the difference.” Patio: Prep, preen and party

ith your mind on pools, parties and plumbing, you might not think much about the ground beneath your feet. But you should. Think of your patio as the runway to great backyard memories.

Lay it on. Overlay some stamped concrete over your exiting patio to create a whole new vibe, says Matthew Lane of Proficient Patios Backyard Designs, a family-owned business that sells everything from loungers to grills to stamped concrete and the hands to lay it. Pavers are really popular, too, this year, because of their fairly maintenance-free application, particularly porcelain pavers, which lend backyards a shiny finish and the contemporary look that is becoming so popular. Earthy, natural stone products are also trending in landscapes and hardscapes. Acting shady. Just the right tree in just the right place can give you the perfect seating area to enjoy an afternoon cocktail. There are all sorts of shade structures to consider: Today’s biggest seller, according to Lane, is Alumawood, low-maintenance, weather-resistant aluminum structures that come in a variety of contemporary styles. Or

maybe you’re the rum, beer tap and tiki hut sort — what’s most important in designing your patio is to make it fit your lifestyle. Light up your life. Whether you opt for an outdoor kitchen or not, you’ll want to consider accent lighting. RGB (red, green, blue) color-changing LEDs, including remote color wheels, are becoming increasingly popular to light everything backyard, from landscape to hardscape and even water and fire features. “You could have 14,000 colors on this one color option, so you can even have mood colors,” says Lane. Although a complete RGB LED landscape package could cost up to $10,000, lighting can be done cost-effectively, too. To create a backyard paradise on a more moderate budget, Lane suggests a patio overlay, an Alumawood patio structure and maybe some artificial grass applications. “These are easy things to do without going way over budget,” he says.

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Your little chefs will enjoy eating these recipes as much as theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll enjoy making them (with a little help from you) by

O k s a n a M a r a f i ot i

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C h r i s to p h e r Sm i t h

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European style muesli with oats, yogurt, jam and trail mix

his healthy and delicious breakfast doesn’t require any heavy-duty cookware — and not a single trip to the stove. Let the kids make it for you, and then praise them on their mastery. They’ll love being creative with the varieties of yogurt, jam and trail mix they can use — and you’ll love having a morning of pure leisure. Makes 1 bowl Ingredients: L

3/4 cup oats

1/2 cup milk, or more to taste

2 tablespoons yogurt

1 tablespoon jam

1 tablespoon dried fruit trail mix

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, pour milk over oats, making sure the milk doesn’t cover the oats, as you want them to thicken. 2. Let stand for 3 minutes until the oats absorb most of the milk. 3. Add two dollops of yogurt and a tablespoon of jam. 4. Sprinkle with the trail mix and enjoy.

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Wafflehoneyapple-PBbananwich

hese breakfast waffle sandwiches are loaded with the sweet, fruity goodness kids adore â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re a breeze to make. Experimenting with different types of fruit combinations and peanut butter is encouraged. So is finger-licking. Just remember to have plenty of napkins around, because things are bound to get messy. Serves 4

Ingredients: L

8 frozen waffles

1 -2 apples, thinly sliced

4 tablespoons peanut butter (or more to taste)

1 -2 bananas, thinly sliced

honey

Directions:

1. Heat waffles according to the directions. 2. Spread peanut butter on top of each waffle. 3. Layer four waffles with apples and bananas, and drizzle with honey. 4. Cover with the remaining waffles to make 4 sandwiches.

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Russian kotleti (open-faced hamburgers)

ands down, kotleti is the best European hamburger this side of the ocean. These meat patties are delightfully moist on the inside and crispy on the outside. And they’re full of flavor, so much of it that you’ll prefer eating them without buns or condiments, which kind of makes them a healthier alternative to the old-fashioned hamburger. Traditionally, kotleti are served open-faced with a side of mashed potatoes and veggies. Makes 12 patties Ingredients: L

1 thick slice of French bread

milk for soaking

1 -1/2 pounds ground beef (best fresh)

1 -1/2 pounds ground pork (best fresh)

1 small potato, grated

1 small onion, grated

S alt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup unsalted butter

4 tablespoons olive oil, or more to taste

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Directions:

1. Soak the bread in the milk for 5 minutes. Squeeze the bread to remove any excess milk. Set aside. 2. In a large bowl, combine beef, pork, onion, potato, bread, salt and pepper. Knead until well mixed. 3. Heat butter and oil in a large skillet on medium-low heat. 4. Meanwhile, form the mixture into 4-inch oval patties. You’ll make about 12 patties. 5. When the oil and butter mixture starts to foam, turn up the heat to medium. 6. Layer the skillet with kotleti and fry until richly browned on both sides, about 5 minutes on each side. 7. Heat a small stew pot with a lid over low heat. 8. Add the prepared kotleti to the stew pot and cover to keep warm. (Don’t skip this step. It helps the patties to become moist and flavorful.) 9. Cook kotleti in batches, adding oil as needed. 10. Serve on a bun, slice of bread or enjoy by itself.

Paprika skillet fries

he secret to this scrumptious recipe is the deep-frying process that makes fries so flavorful: by frying the potatoes in a single layer in super-hot oil. Sweet potatoes also work wonderfully well instead of conventional potatoes. Serve with a side of fruit for an easy and delicious lunch. Serves 4

Ingredients: L

4 medium Idaho potatoes

2 teaspoons paprika

garlic salt to taste

12 tablespoons olive oil

4 tablespoons butter

Directions:

1. In a large skillet, heat olive oil and butter over low heat. 2. Meanwhile, cut the potatoes into fries. Make sure theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not too thin. 3. In a large bowl, toss the fries to coat with paprika and garlic salt. 4. Turn the heat to medium-high. Oil and butter should be very hot. 5. Fry the potatoes in a single layer until golden brown on all sides, about 7-10 minutes. 6. Drain on a paper napkin and serve at once.

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Under the eggshell sky, 1976 For a 6-year-old, this was a magical city of lights, mysterious voids and basketball — the stuff memories are made of By Greg Blake Miller

hat is this place, where the world has only just cracked open? These canyons bleeding, these expanses of sand and black stone, the yucca puncturing the land like fallen arrows. What is this hovering eggshell sky, its shattered edges jagged all around us? If I could fly, would I be able to touch its cool surface? They say that beneath it, purple on the horizon … they say those are mountains. And at certain times, on certain days, I’m sure they’re right. But as the sun fades on this day (let’s call it Sunday) of some month (perhaps March) of a year they call 1976, I am rolling along in the back seat of a tan Ford sedan, looking out the window, and I see quite clearly that those are not mountains at all, but a shimmering void beneath the eggshell. The void is shrouded in silver-violet mist. I want to go there, to bathe in the twilight haze, to discover what is hidden within and what lies beyond. Instead I roll on, in that Ford, through my seventh year on this Earth, surrendering to the wheels, to the decisions of the front-seat grownups.

P h oto g r a p h y B r e n t H o l m e s

But even from a distance, the void brings magic to my afternoons. I am thrilled by the idea of a land that ends. When something ends, there is something else beyond, and the unseen beyond belongs to my imagination alone. The shimmer of the edge, the unstable illumination of 6 p.m. skies, casts mystery across the whole valley. The street is called Flamingo; if we drive far enough we will see feathers of pink neon and, beyond the feathers, a palace glowing green-blue through a web of white stone. On another corner, a marquee invites me to something called the Dome of the Sea. How wonderful it is to be on this street and newly able to read! A sea with a dome—it sounds a lot like my beloved eggshell sky, just served over water. I want to go to the Dome of the Sea, but somehow, deep down—no, not deep down; in some shallower space!—somehow I know that the Dome of the Sea is a fish restaurant, and that I do not like fish. The shallower space likes to whisper bitter wisdom, to dispel my violet haze with what is said to be real. I listen only when absolutely necessary. The edge: We live with a glowing city on one side of us and raw desert on the other. The street names sum it up: Pearl and Sandhill. If you hop our backyard wall, you’ll land on a ranch, and on the ranch you’ll find buffalo. I spend my time beneath the big sky on the backyard lawn, lounging with my brown brindle boxer, then stirring us both to action and sprinting in circles in the sun. We call it the Kentucky Dog Derby. My dog is undefeated here on her home soil. We have a cement slab, and a basketball pole — a real playground basketball pole, thick and embedded in the slab. My mother called all over the school district to find out where they ordered their playground hoops, and then she ordered one for my brother and me. She is that kind of mother, and it is that kind of school district, and that kind of city.

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July 2015 A Tasting of DEALicious Meals Issue Party Join us for a tasting of DEALicious meals from past and present. August 2015 Health & Medicine Issue Party Celebrate Southern Nevada’s top doctors with a lively evening of hors d’oeuvres, cocktails and great company.

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essay

She asked a question, and it was answered, and the answer was local, and the solution was available. When my parents speak of friends, of gatherings and dinner parties, they speak of handymen and doctors and decorators and housepainters and usedcar salesmen and state senators. They all eat the same roast beef over the same tables at the same dinner parties in the same homes. They are neighbors. At the back of the basketball slab, we have a brown wooden gate with two small openings shaped like the stars on the Stardust sign. My dog can jump over the fence, but I have seen something even more remarkable: water, six feet high, flowing through those starbursts and over the gate. I cannot pin down the moment when I saw this, and I have no proof that it ever happened. But when I hear my parents talking about Richard Nixon, this is the picture in my head. Elections are approaching: There is the man named after our car, there is Ronald Reagan, who, I hear around our Republican dinner table, “wants to start World War III,” and there is Jimmy Carter, who wants to convert us all to Christianity. We decide on the man named after our car. Elections arrive, and he loses, though we remain Jewish. Just this past summer, my big sister finished her first summer as a counselor at the Temple Beth Shalom Kinder Kamp. On lucky days, I was in her group, and we sat cross-legged on the lawn while she strummed her guitar and sang “One Tin Soldier.” Across the street: Griffith Methodist Church, where I and a bunch of other Jewish kids had, a few years earlier, gone to our first year of nursery school, learning under the dazzling gaze of Miss Melody. How we loved the roller coaster whitewashed roof, the sloping tower, the stained glass. How we Jewish kids loved that church! It was that kind of city. That was back when I was 3. Afterward, I missed Miss Melody, her eyes, her long brown hair, her musical name. I saw her one more time, at Lake Mead Marina, where my mother had taken me into the ladies’ room. It was not the reunion I had been hoping for. But enough with childish memories! It is November, the elections are over, I am in first grade, and I have been told that I am

finally old enough to go to a Rebels game. We pile into the car, Mom and Dad and my sister and brother and I, we roll down Flamingo, we make a sudden turn down Paradise — I have never yet been down Paradise. The Convention Center Rotunda: a flying saucer, pale green, hovering over a parking lot, ready to take us someplace wonderful. We board. Inside, the seats are deep-cushioned, a sort of rusty orange. A sign: “Welcome to Tark’s Shark Tank.” Below — the players in red-and-white warmup suits, their names on separate swatches of fabric, snapped to their backs. The suits come off: White uniforms, a red stripe down the side. Number 10 — Robert Smith. Number 11 — Eddie Owens. Larry Moffett, number 42. Sam Smith, number 40. And there’s the one who, as soon as the game starts, is on the floor, scrambling for a loose ball, bounding to his feet, diving into the second row, pulling down a rebound with three opponents clinging to him. That’s number 25, Glen Gondrezick, and all at once he merges with my city, as surely as if he had just stepped out of the violet void, the magic still clinging to his skin. The Rebels charge toward the basket as if mounted on invisible steeds — they seem at once above and below and around and beyond their opponents. In my vision of their otherworldly flotation lurks the phantom of another Saturday blue-collar hero, this one from the early mornings: Aquaman, aboard his giant seahorse. You know, it’s really hard to hold your breath. I like this strange combination of frictionless motion and the effortful grind that makes it possible: That’s Gondo, at once smooth and jagged, the eggshell and the mist. That’s Las Vegas, the handyman and the buffalo and the wild desert lots right next to the supermarket and the lizards who can lose their tails and grow them right back and the dancing lights and the words suspended overhead, spelling themselves out in the soft neon night. One morning I will read this in the sports section: That the fans of another team, the one in Provo, Utah, see Las Vegas as “Sin City on the edge of hell.” How can I possibly explain to them what the edge of this valley really means, and how close to heaven it really is?

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education

How your garden grows As they sprout across the valley, school gardens are growing more than vegetables and herbs. They’re cultivating a broad new approach to elementary science education — and stronger community roots B y H e i d i K ys e r

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n a sunny February afternoon in Crestwood Elementary School’s teaching garden, fourth-grader Carlos blurts out, “Look at the cilantro plant. Each branch has five flowers. Five is a Fibonacci number.” Special education teacher Juliana Urtubey, who’d asked the students to scour the garden for math problems, stops in her tracks. “Yes …” she says, encouraging him. He goes on, “Look. If you count the petals, there are eight on each flower. So, we could multiply five times eight to get the number of petals on each branch.” “Yes, yes we can!” Urtubey says, struggling to contain her joy. A Fibonacci number is an integer in a particular sequence that also appears as patterns in nature, such as tree branches and pinecone scales. It’s surprising enough that a fourth-grader knows what a Fibonacci number is. But it’s especially remarkable for Carlos (not his real name) to get it, as Urtubey explains, standing in the garden a month later: “Multiplying is not his thing. I think we’ve relearned how to multiply all the numbers about 10 times. It just doesn’t stick with him. In this

Branching out: Bracken Elementary student Natalia Vargas enjoys the school garden's plum tree.

case, I had taught Fibonacci numbers five months earlier, but he remembered it when he looked at the cilantro flowers. It’s a different intelligence that you can pull out of kids out here. They don’t get to shine like that in the classroom.” Research backs her up. A 2005 study of 647 students in seven Texas elementary schools found that third through fifth grade students who learned science through school garden activities scored significantly higher on a science achievement test than the control group, which studied the subject in a traditional classroom setting. But knowing such breakthroughs are possible and making them happen are two different things. Urtubey will be the first to tell you that she knew nothing about gardening when she started Crestwood’s program. And her administration requires that time spent in the garden fulfill rigorous instructional mandates. With all the other standards students have to meet, gardening can seem like a burden or distraction. On the other hand, if done well, it can feel like it does for Urtubey. “This is the best thing that’s happened to me, in terms of my teaching, since I started this career

P h oto g r a p h y b r e n t h o l m e s

six years ago,” she says today. Dozens of gardens are cropping up throughout Clark County School District. Once the funding has been raised and the ribbon-cutting fanfare has passed, how can other schools, like Crestwood, make the most of these newfound resources? Soil change

alter Bracken elementary did school gardens before school gardens were cool, at least in Las Vegas. The so-called STEAM (science, technology engineering, arts and math) Academy’s garden may not be the oldest (Mabel Hoggard Math & Science Magnet Elementary School holds that distinction), but it is remarkable for its pervasiveness both in academics and on school grounds. “Bracken is amazing,” Urtubey says. “We joke that they’re a garden with a school, instead of a school with a garden.” Bracken has some 30 raised garden beds along with orchards encompassing all manner of fruits, vegetables and herbs. The school also has two tortoise habitats and a “Musical Fairy Garden” with a stage, a percussion wall made from repurposed pots and pans, and hand-crocheted flowers woven through the chain-link fence. Take a tour with Chris Herbert, coordinator of Bracken’s STEAM magnet program, and you get a feel for what makes her school’s gardens special: the organic (pardon the pun) way they grew. The first garden came about a dozen years ago, Herbert says, when she and some colleagues wondered how to make better use of a dead zone on the west side of campus. A teacher who ran a construction company on the side donated his services, and voila! They transformed a gravel-covered area surrounded by chain-link fence into four raised garden beds painted pink and blue. “We just added the soil and started it ourselves,” Herbert says. “At the time, our first-grade curriculum included a planting unit, and we thought we’d use it for that.” Since then, other barren areas and decorative landscaping — nearly every square foot of the unusually large campus that isn’t occupied by buildings, that is — has been converted to garden space. Over the years, teachers asked for their

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own areas where they could teach lessons tailored to their grades and specialties. The kindergarten area, for instance, had an alphabet garden last fall, with one plant for each letter, A-Z, so kids could use it to learn their ABCs. “One thing we decided early on was that one person couldn’t be in charge of any part of the program, because then if they leave, it goes away,” Herbert says. “Instead, we decided that all the teachers would be involved in some way. That’s why we have so many gardens: It’s tied to what everyone teaches. We have a whole garden curriculum now.” To give an idea of how this plays out, on a single day in March, a breezeway outside one classroom wing is stacked with carts and boxes holding cucumber, tomato and cilantro starter plants in red Solo cups. They’re being readied for the school’s annual plant sale, which will also include a farmers market featuring the latest garden harvest (all school events now include a farmers market for clearing out produce and raising money). In the cafeteria, meanwhile, first and second graders are participating in the monthly Junior Chef cooking class, making a radish and cilantro salsa from ingredients they and their fellow students have planted, grown and picked. And in the life sciences lab, second graders are cultivating strawberries in a hydroponics lab custom-built by engineering students at Rancho High School with funding from Leadership Las Vegas. Cowboy Trail Farms owner Marilyn Yamamoto offered her hydroponics expertise to get students going, and their goal is to grow enough fresh produce that it can be added to school cafeteria salads. Community involvement in the program is apparent at every turn: here, a tortoise habitat that students’ dads built from donated materials; there, Ziploc bags full of kale that’s been washed, packed and labeled with nutrition information by moms volunteering for the farmers market. If there’s a secret to Bracken’s gardening success — and they’ve got the awards to prove they’re successful — this is it: community buy-in.

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Fruit of the room: Left, Create a Change Now Executive Director Melissa Blynn; below, Bracken students grow and learn — literally — in the school garden.

Getting hands dirty

esearch on the academic efficacy of school garden programs suggests that it stems from essential elements in Bracken’s program: a well-integrated curriculum and teacher training. Other players in the district’s school-garden scene understand this and are realizing the concepts in a variety of ways. Create a Change Now, which has gardens in 11 schools (and 3 more underway), takes a focused after-school approach, says executive director, Melissa Blynn. “We do garden nutrition and fitness education,” she says, adding that the nonprofit only takes on four or five schools a year, and only Title 1 schools (those with a high percentage of kids receiving free or reduced-price lunches), so that they can be very hands-on in the early stages of development. Create a Change’s programming, dubbed Healthy School, Healthy Life, revolves around four main activities. The garden club, shepherded by the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, meets after school seven times a year to teach kids and parents how to garden both at school and at home. For the Chefs in Schools component of the program, each school is linked to a restaurant that does two cooking demonstrations at the school and holds one fundraiser at the restaurant each year. Let’s Move!, First Lady Mi-

chelle Obama’s initiative, takes the form of fitness camps put on by nonprofit Desert Rain during Christmas and spring breaks. And, finally, monthly farmers markets provide families with an opportunity to get affordable, fresh food for home. Another group, Green Our Planet, has focused more broadly on STEM education. Partners Ciara Byrne and Kim MacQuarrie set out to launch an online fundraising platform for eco-conscious nonprofits, but the effort grew into Las Vegas’ most prolific school garden developer, having now jump-started funding for 60 gardens in Southern Nevada. Green Our Planet used a grant it won last year to fund the development of state-approved STEM curricula for kindergarten through fifth graders. Crestwood’s Urtubey helped write the fifth-grade curriculum, and Crestwood teachers participated in the K-5 evaluation process, taking lessons, teaching them to their grade level and giving feedback for fine-tuning. Green Our Planet has also incorporated entrepreneurialism and culinary arts into its programming through farmers markets and chef demonstrations, and has enlisted UNLV to study the impact of gardens on the schools they’re in. MacQuarrie, Byrne and Blynn all believe such community partnerships are key to their gardens’ longevity. In different ways, both Create a Change and Green Our Planet are fostering volun-

Share the Power of a Wish®... teer support to help schools keep their gardens going, and both are working on plans for garden-specific professional development for teachers. But most already have day-to-day help in the form of contractor Garden Farms of Nevada. “Our job is to keep that garden going and flourishing, so that there’s something there for the teachers to teach their curriculum out of,” says company owner Bryan Vellinga. “It’s a unique component among school garden programs. There’s no other school district I know of that has partnered with a gardening company like us.” A former casino horticulturist and landscaper, Vellinga parlayed his knack for growing food in the desert into a full-time business five years ago. He and his wife (and business partner) Brittany Vellinga approached schools early on, out of a desire to teach kids to grow food. But right away, they saw funding would be an issue; the school district couldn’t afford to build gardens, and Garden Farms wasn’t in the fundraising business. Once nonprofits such as Create a Change and Green Our Planet got involved, Vellinga says, school gardens took off. With Garden Farms’ fees built into their garden budgets, the schools get weekly professional service that includes basic maintenance, as well as teaching both students and staff gardening skills. “If you tell a teacher, ‘We want you to teach your subject and also grow a garden and make sure it’s thriving,’ they’ll look at you cross-eyed,” Vellinga says. “Sometimes they’re on board, but often, they’re too overwhelmed. Our role is to keep teachers involved. All our farmers are actively involved in the school-garden movement — and it is a growing movement.” Vellinga says his goal is to bring his clients to the point where they don’t need him anymore. He gives the example of Desert Oasis High School, where special ed teacher and garden coordinator Jennifer Davis relied heavily on Garden Farms for her first couple years. Then, she was ready to handle the program on her own. “That really plays into a garden’s longterm sustainability,” Vellinga says. “The money Jennifer would have been paying us — now, she can keep it for the kids.”

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FROM

NO WAY! MONET! TO

Introducing your child to art — how to look at it, how to make it — can be a fulfilling experience for both of you. Here’s how to do it. P H o t o g r a ph y b y

CHRISTOPHER SMITH

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s a parent, I didn’t often drag my little anarchists to galleries or museums. Art-curious myself, I usually settled for solo trips to local exhibits, convinced that my sons would swan around the gallery in melodramatic boredom after three minutes in a space clearly meant for thinking adults. However, my wife and I did take them to the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art not long after it opened. What a scrum of masterworks that was! I saw my first in-person Jackson Pollock that day, frozen in place for 10 minutes as it laid its eggs in my brain. (Look, kids, daddy’s blitzed on art!) You’d think a nice goopy abstract painting would capture a kid’s attention, if only in a hey-I-could-do-that kind of way, and I wondered how to explain to the kids what little I understood about Pollock’s achievement. Totally wasn’t necessary. Asked about their favorites, two of the three quickly picked the Rubens canvas depicting Salome inspecting the severed head of John the Baptist. Well, of course. Shoulda seen that coming. No explanation required, either: For young boys, a cool beheading is its own explanation. The third son preferred a winsome drawing by Paul Klee, which made me think he’d develop at least a small affinity for complex visual art. Turns out I was right: His affinity is small. Mostly he likes stick-figure webcomics. Still, it’s never too late to introduce your kids to art. In the last few years, my youngest son has started going to some galleries with me, showing a cautious openness to contemporary art. He’s 21. But you needn’t wait that long. We’ve asked some art-savvy parents how they implanted an appreciation for the stuff — seeing it, making it — into their kids. Scott Dickensheets

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The goal is to introdUce him to a skill set that he can use to make a difference in the world Joseph Watson Artist Introducing my child to art is one of the most satisfying things I have ever done. My wife, Tamara, and I have a 3-year-old son whose name is Joey. My art signature happens to be “Joee.” My son is already following in my footsteps. Often, my son comes with me to art events and down to the studio. Most of the time, he will observe me paint until he asks me to give him something to paint with. I’m sure my son knows the process of creating a life-changing image from a blank canvas. Time after time, he walks through our house and just points to the paintings on the wall and shouts, “Daddy made that!” When Joey, Tamara and I are at a gallery or museum, I teach him how to respect the art first by observing. Usually, during this observation time, Joey says “Da Da made that?” I tell him no, but it is still something cool. Also, when I drop him off at daycare, they have paintings in the hall that we walk through. We count the paintings as well as acknowledge their existence. Usually, I don’t wait until he has questions. It’s either him asking right away, or me saying, “Isn’t that cool?” At the end of the day, I can truly say that my kid has an understanding of the basic value of art. Hopefully, he will share it with all of his friends! Kids need art. It soothes them and grows their minds. The goal for me isn’t to force my son to end up as a successful artist, but to introduce him to a skill set that he can use as an optional way to

make a difference in the world or perhaps make a great living. Recently, I started working on a joint creative project with a company called LVCK. On Saturdays, I usually bring a few of the pieces down to the studio, along with Joey. On one particular Saturday, Joey was watching me draw on one of the pieces. Some customers came in, and I got up to talk to them. After a few minutes, I turned around and Joey was scribbling on my drawing. I was shocked, and so was he because of my reaction. Little did I know, this would be our first father/son collaboration. I embraced his scribbling technique and used it throughout. Believe it or not, that piece got many compliments on First Friday for its loose quality.

Observe and learn it for yourself Michele Quinn Gallerist, arts consultant Since my daughter was born, I have brought art into her life in various ways. While we have works at home, she has also

been to major museums, Chelsea galleries and art fairs — and she is 4. I have always gone with the idea that she should learn to look at art and really absorb it for herself — in her own way — not what I think she should know. Of course, the first rule is DO NOT TOUCH! She knows quite well that we don’t touch artwork/sculpture or anything on the walls! I have also made a point of finding children’s books that are specific to art and art history, but also fun. One of our favorites is When Pigcaso met Mootisse (about a pig and a bull who were famous artist friends). So just her visual exposure to these masterworks will hopefully resonate in her brain in the years to come. Parents should bring their children to museums at an early age; don’t just rely on schools to take them. Ask them to tell you what they see — you will be surprised at some of the answers and may learn something yourself. I apply this to my clients as much as my daughter: Don’t have someone else tell you what you need to know about art, observe and learn it for yourself. What do you see? How do you feel when you look at it? She will now spot things that I don’t see, with such a fresh perspective. As for making art — have fun! Don’t worry what it looks like!

I feel no need to push her in any one direction Miguel Rodriguez Artist My daughter, Magdalena, is a special case. I’m an artist and her mother is an elementary art teacher, so, really, there never was an introduction, per se. For her, art and the act of creating just always was. It is important that she have an appreciation for art, but I feel no need to push her in any one direction. My mom raised us without judgment and unnecessary expectation, and that’s the way I try to raise my daughter. My mother inundated me and my siblings with art endeavors. I took ballet and tap dancing, cake decorating and all manners of visual-arts classes. I ate it all up with gusto. I’d say that the way she raised us definitely oriented me toward being an artist. That said, it never really felt like we were being introduced to art as much as we were

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being given tools to be creative. That gets to the crux of how I feel about my daughter’s art education. The important thing is that she has a grasp of how to use her brain to express herself and create something ... anything. It need not be art, generally speaking. A creative person is a smart person, and that’s all I want for Magdalena.

The best way to teach my son art is to immerse him in all of it Gig Depio Artist I’ve always felt that children are naturally drawn toward art because it is an immediate way of expressing their understanding of the world around them. Art helps them sort through memories and the relationships between them without having to wrestle with their limited speech. Introducing my son to art at an early age has helped him sharpen many ideas by making concepts visually tangible. This, I believe, has helped him develop a much more vivid imagination and improve some of his skills in problem-solving. My dad, who was an art professor at the university, believes it’s never too early to teach children the same techniques as in art school. He insisted that children absorb these lessons differently because their minds are like a clean slate, without grown-up prejudice. So I started seriously teaching my son oil painting when he was 11 years old. At this age, he was making a total mess, but I gave him the freedom to experiment with the paint because my primary goal was to get him used to it and get over his initial anxiety and hesitation — two major obstacles to artistic expression. He still makes a bit of

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a mess now, but with my supervision his strokes have become much more mature and free. In fact, he has already sold some paintings, one of them during a fundraiser at the Paris Las Vegas last year. I also believe that art provides a kind of healing in children. My son has been diagnosed with ADHD, and has always had difficulty focusing and completing tasks. In my experience, art has helped my son calm down and concentrate. He now gets lost in the moment. We purposely never formally talk about art. I grew up in a gallery, which was our house, and we would have guests every day, different artists and collectors alike. Just like myself, my son grew up with artists and their works all around him. I feel that the best way to teach my son art is to immerse him in all of it, get him to work on his own paintings, and then let him tag along throughout the entire Las Vegas art scene. We never really talk about it, but I make sure he feels that he is actually part of the whole social presence. And in the process, he does get it, including unfamiliar pieces or genres. Art then becomes second nature in children, and this, in my opinion, fosters the most important values every budding artist should have today.

If you’re excited, chances are the kids will be stoked, too Dawn-Michelle Baude Art critic Kids and visual art go together. They draw pictures whenever there’s a scrap of paper or a tablet at hand. So why are art outings greeted with less enthusiasm, than, say, a visit to Wet ’n’ Wild? Because kids suspect there’s some-

thing they’re supposed to “get” when looking at fine art. Some information, some knowledge or wisdom. And that means looking at art isn’t just play. First, it’s learning how to see. Then it’s learning about the artist and technique, about culture and ideas. … Uh-oh. Maybe going to see an art exhibition is like going to school, minus friends and free time. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Even the most resistant kids can enjoy looking at fine art. Here’s how: • YES! We’re going to an art exhibit! If you’re excited, chances are the kids will be stoked, too. Use your Super-Parent powers: Hide reservations about the outing beneath the Cloak of Invisibility. This is going to be so much fun! • Choose appropriate works. Young children respond to bright colors and vigorous, abstract forms better than dark works or detailed pictures. Older kids favor representational art, because they like figuring out the story — who the person is in the composition or what event is being portrayed. Teen taste goes either way: abstract work syncs with rebellion, realism makes them feel more secure. Because one of the many purposes of art is to shock viewers into awareness, do research beforehand to ensure subject matter lands in the comfort zone. • Interview your child about the art experience. Dialoguing is key to art appreciation, and reinforces an important skill: translating a visual experience into a verbal one. Imagination is key in making the leap. What is the artist picturing? Why does this photograph make you think of outer space? How does this sculpture remind you of our backyard? Prefer specific questions to general ones, open-ended questions to yes/no. • Use the exhibit space to your advantage. Observe the artwork from 10 feet away, four feet and as close as you can get. Big pieces, designed for distance viewing, reveal treasures up close. Small format works morph into abstraction from far away. Frontal views differ from diagonal views. Try a variety of positions, especially when viewing a work for the first time.

m o d e l : s h e a s at t e r w h i t e

• Use the body to enhance the visual experience. Choose a comfortable frontal position, have the kid squint and watch the image transform. High-contrast works may produce a visual jolt if eyes are closed to the count of five and then opened. Stare at blocks of color and then look at another part of the artwork or the wall to induce mild optical illusions. Look first with one eye, then the other, to experience how the artwork changes when binocular vision goes mono. • Investigate synesthesia. Although synesthesia — when input to one sensory system triggers a response in another — affects only about 1 percent of the population, among kids (and artists) the percentage is believed to be much higher. What sound does the lemon-yellow line make? What do blue triangles taste like? Does the black sky feel more like cotton or wood? Even if

the kids aren’t synesthetic, they may still enjoy the game. • Read representational works as you would books. Discuss the setting — indoors, outdoors, day or night? Ask questions about the “characters,” including names, where they come from, what they’re thinking, what’s happening around them that’s not in the picture. Young readers with storybooks under their belts have little trouble finding a plot. Ask what the person was doing just before he or she was portrayed, or what’s going to happen if you could see the next drawing or painting in the story. Visually literate teens can apply skills from years of experience with advertising to interpret artwork messages. • Don’t quash weird responses — ask for elaboration. The quickest way to ruin the art experience is to “correct” the interpretation, even if it’s way off the mark

in terms of artistic intention or how the artwork is often discussed. Praise the kid’s effort without underestimating accuracy, since even the most naive viewers can agree with the most seasoned critics. Offer alternative interpretations to stimulate new ideas, and gently guide older, more engaged viewers toward deeper understanding. • Show them you can play, too. Tell them what you think, see and imagine. Comment on the titles, share information about the artist, explain materials and venture information about how the work was made. Offer comparisons between artworks — those in the gallery, those you’ve seen in the past. Most of all, describe how the work makes you feel. Sharing emotions strengthens bonds and teaches kids that art isn’t just what you see, it’s what happens inside, too.

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Learn, grow and play with this events & resource guide

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Events ART

Chocolate: The Exhibition

THROUGH MAY 3 Enter a tropical rainforest to learn how cacao is grown and how it is processed to fulfill today’s global demand. Examine chocolate’s role throughout history and learn how mass production of chocolate bars fueled the Industrial Revolution. Free with general admission. Springs Preserve

Car Show

THROUGH MAY 8 Artists Justin Favela and Sean Slattery will collaborate to create an indoor car show featuring three new, life-size recreations, including one built piñata-style. Free. Clark County Government Center Rotunda Gallery, clarkcountynv.gov

Art Festival Of Henderson

MAY 9-10, 9A-4P Showcasing art from some of the region’s best artisans and featuring hours of live entertainment, a chalk artwork competition and a children’s interactive arts district. Free. Henderson Events Plaza and Henderson Convention Center, cityofhenderson.com MUSIC

Music Together

APRIL 17, 9A Families with babies, infants, toddlers and preschoolers are invited for some singing, dancing, music-making fun and even a free CD of award-winning music! Free. Temple Beth Sholom, 10700 Havenwood Lane, citylightsmusictogether.com

Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella

APRIL 28-MAY 3, TUE-SUN 7:30P; SAT-SUN 2P The musical from the creators of The Sound of Music and South Pacific that’s delighting audiences with its contemporary take on the classic tale. $39-$139. Reynolds Hall at The Smith Center

Charlie Chaplin’s The Kid

JUNE 6, 8:30P The Henderson Symphony Orchestra performs the musical soundtrack to a screening of the silent comedic feature The Kid. Chaplin’s iconic Tramp raises an aban-

doned child until the authorities intervene. Slapstick and tears soon follow. $10-$20. Henderson Pavilion, cityofhenderson.com THEATER

Wouldn’t Grow Up

APRIL 17, 7P; APRIL 18, 12P & 5P The Winchester Headliners present the 1904 play by J.M. Barrie, the very first incarnation of the story of Peter, Wendy and Captain Hook, which Barrie revised until its 1928 publication. $7. Winchester Cultural Center, clarkcountynv.gov

Las Vegas Improvisational Players

APRIL 18, MAY 16, JUNE 20, JULY 18, AUG. 15, 7P Clean-burning, kid-friendly fun “Whose Line is it Anyway?” style. Be part of the show as the audience chooses each scene and song’s inspiration. $10 at the door, kids free. American Heritage Academy, 6126 S. Sandhill Road, lvimprov.com

You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown

MAY 15, 16, 22, 23, 7:30P This classic musical based on Charles Schulz’ beloved PEANUTS comic strip is being presented by The Shakespeare Institute of Nevada. Come see the Peanuts gang! $10-$22.50. Henderson Pavilion, cityofhenderson.com

Nevada High School Musical Theater Awards

MAY 17, 3P Recognizing nominees for Best Lead Actor and Actress from this year’s local high school musical theater productions. $10. Reynolds Hall at The Smith Center

Annie

MAY 26-31, 7:30P; MAY 30, 2P Leapin’ Lizards! One of the world’s bestloved musicals is back in time-honored form. Directed by original lyricist Martin Charnin, this new production of Annie will be a classic incarnation of the beloved original. $34-$129. Reynolds Hall at The Smith Center

Camp Broadway

classic camp, June 15-19; shining stars camp, june 22-26 Camp Broadway is a summer camp experience that enables theater-loving kids, ages 6-17, to develop their confidence, character and presentation skills through ensemble performance. The immersive week-long

program highlights musical theater and drama, and includes acting technique workshops, exposure to the Broadway movement and music rehearsal process and performance opportunities led by trained Broadway professionals. $450-$695. The Smith Center, thesmithcenter.com/ campbroadway BOOKS AND STORYTELLING

Mary Poppins Storytime

MAY 28, JUNE 25, JULY 30, 11A Everyone’s favorite nanny will be engaging Toddler Town visitors in song, dance and storytelling. Stop by to see Mary as she will raffle off a children’s book and special services courtesy of Nannies and Housekeepers USA. $14.50. Discovery Children’s Museum, discoverykidslv.org

Battle Of The Books: Showdown

MAY 7, 5:30-7P Students from several elementary schools have been reading and studying a total of eight books and now the top two teams will compete in the final battle. Free. Whitney Library, lvccld.org FAMILY & FESTIVALS

Henderson Heritage Parade & Festival

APRIL 18, 9A-7P Join the city for its special birthday celebration chronicling more than six decades of Henderson history. Bring the family to enjoy a parade, car show, live entertainment and full-on festival! Henderson Events Plaza, 200 Water St., hendersonlive.com

22nd Annual Clark County International Children’s Festival

APRIL 18, 10A-3P Exotic animals from Roos ‘n’ More highlight this event with dance and music performances, arts and crafts, clown workshops, percussion workshops, storytelling and carnival games while performers stroll the park. Includes a rock climbing wall, historic battles, pony rides and food and drink. Free; fee for some rides and vendors. Winchester Cultural Center, clarkcountynv.gov

Día Del Niño

APRIL 25, 12-5P Celebrate and honor children (or the child in you) with hours of fun including

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THE GUIDE clowns and magicians, dancing and singing groups, interactive games, traditional Mexican food and drink, hands-on arts and crafts and much more. $6 adults; $4 children 5-17; children 4 and under are free. Springs Amphitheater at Springs Preserve

A Celebrar El Cinco De Mayo

MAY 5, 4P An event commemorating the Mexican holiday celebrating the Battle of Pueblo featuring stories, crafts, songs and a piñata. Free. Mesquite Library, lvccld.org

Flip Through Summer

MAY 16, 10A-1P United Way of Southern Nevada will be hosting this family fun summer kickoff event featuring six book nooks with live readings and various creative and imaginative children’s activities. Free. Springs Preserve, uwsn.org/flipthroughsummer

Summer-Fun Camps

JUNE 8-AUG 21, MON-FRI 9A-4P Each week’s camp features a different theme and includes explorations of Springs Preserve and Nevada State Museum, swimming at the YMCA, guest speakers, crafts, games and more. Ages 6-12. Members, $190/week; Non-members, $215/week. $50/week for after-hours care. Springs Preserve

Performing And Visual Arts Summer Camp For Kids

JUNE 15-AUG 8, MON-FRI 7A-5P These camps provide community youth with pivotal opportunities for civil engagement and social justice projects through the disciplines of arts education. $400. West Las Vegas Arts Center, artslasvegas.org FUNDRAISERS

Grant A Gift Autism 5K Run For Hope & Fun Walk

APRIL 25, 7A-12P Celebrate Autism Awareness Month and support families affected by autism in Southern Nevada. Activities include an autism resource fair, balloon artists, face painting, awards and live entertainment. All proceeds benefit the Grant a Gift Autism Foundation for Southern Nevada. $10-$125. The Green at Town Square, grantagift autismfoundation.org

resources AMUSEMENTS

Dig This Heavy Equipment Playground

3012 S. Rancho Drive, 702-222-4344; digthisvegas.com Families will have loads of fun when they get behind the controls of a Caterpillar bulldozer or excavator and begin to build dirt mounds, push gigantic tires, dig huge

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trenches, play “bucket basketball” and more. Guests must complete a breathalyzer, safety procedures, in-cab orientations and warm-up exercises before digging in! Days/times vary, must make reservation; prices start at $249 per dig. Ages 14-plus.

GameWorks Las Vegas At Town Square,

6587 Las Vegas Blvd. S. #171, 702-978-4263; gameworks.com This family-friendly destination features 8,700 square feet of arcade game floor containing classic and modern arcade attractions, including an eight-lane bowling alley, two pool tables, 30 TVs playing all your favorite sports and the flagship eGaming Arena, complete with 60 computers for multiplayer online gaming. Plus gastropub-style American cuisine and an outdoor dining patio. 11a-midnight Sun-Thu and 11-1a Fri-Sat; new game cards range from $5-$52 plus $2 activation fee.

King Putt Entertainment Center

27 S. Stephanie St., Henderson, 702-541-6807; kingputtlv.com Boasting more animations and interactive props than any other mini-golf course, this indoor Egyptian-themed black-light course is unique and challenging. There’s also a laser-tag arena, an arcade and a pizzeria. 2-10p Mon-Thu; noon-1a Fri; 10-1a Sat; and 10a-10p Sun; $5-$9 per person for one round of golf, $5-$7 for game of laser tag and $12 per person for one game each of golf and laser tag.

KISS by Monster Mini Golf

4503 Paradise Road, 702-558-6256; monsterminigolf.com/kiss Play miniature golf under black lights in this indoor KISS-themed glow-in-the-dark course featuring 18 holes surrounded by animatronic figures, exaggerated replicas and hit music of the iconic band, as well as a huge Gene Simmons head sculpture complete with outstretched tongue. Also, arcade games, gift shop, café and even a wedding chapel. 10a-midnight daily; $11.95 per person per round.

Las Vegas Mini Gran Prix

1401 N. Rainbow Blvd., 702-259-7000; lvmgp.com Having the longest go-cart track in Nevada, it offers rides for all ages, including four go-cart tracks with 80 carts. Also available: four amusement rides, arcade games and a 600-seat restaurant. You can book birthday or corporate parties in a 7,000-squarefoot party room, too. 10a-9p Sun, 11a-9p Mon-Thu and 11a-10p Fri-Sat (hours vary seasonally); $7.50 each for one to four tickets, $7 each for five or more purchased at same time or $21.50 per person for one-hour Mega-Ride wristbands.

Pinball Hall of Fame

1610 E. Tropicana Ave., 702-597-2627; pinballmuseum.org At 10,000 square feet and exhibiting the

world’s largest pinball collection, this museum features wall-to-wall popular pinball machines from the 1950s through the 1990s that have been restored to like-new condition, as well as a few retro arcade games like Super Mario Brothers. But the best part is, visitors can play all the machines for 25 or 50 cents each, and since the PHoF is nonprofit, all excess revenue goes to nondenominational charities. 11a-11p Sun-Thu and 11a-midnight FriSat; free admission.

Pole Position Raceway Indoor Karting

4175 S. Arville St. and 7350 Prairie Falcon Road, 702-227-7223; pole positionraceway.com/las-vegas/ Pole Position features a quarter-mile track, electric European carts for adults that can get up to 45 mph and side-by-side racing action. Also available are junior carts that get up to 25 mph. Several indoor racing options are offered, including the popular Arrive & Drive that allows walk-in customers to race on a first-come, first-served basis. Or sign up for one of the raceway’s public events. 11a-11p Sun-Thu and 11a-midnight Fri-Sat; $25.50 per adult nonmember and $20 per adult member; $22 per child for nonmembers and $18 per child for members; $5.95 temporary race license valid for one week. All minors must have waiver signed by parent or guardian to race.

Sky Zone Indoor Trampoline Park

7440 Dean Martin Drive #201, 702-560-5900; skyzone.com/lasvegas This is the world’s first all-trampoline, walled playing court. The park offers open jump, the Foam Zone, low-impact fitness classes, 3-D dodgeball and the SkySlam basketball court that’s great for most ages, shapes or sizes. 2-8p Mon-Thu, 2-10p Fri, 10a-11p Sat and 10a-8p Sun; Toddler Time, 10a-noon Mon, Wed and Fri; $13 for 30 mins.; $16 for 60 mins.; $21 for 90 mins.; $26 for 120 mins. All minors must have waiver signed by parent or guardian.

3-D Family Fun Center

3315 E. Russell Road #4K, 702-6084653; 3dfamilyfuncenter.com This is Southern Nevada’s only 3-D minigolf, laser tag and arcade. The 18-hole course takes guests on a glow-in-the-dark 3-D journey through space, down Route 66, under the sea, through a volcano and more. Featuring flashing lights, sirens and fog, the 2,000-square-foot laser tag arena can accommodate up to 11 players at a time. The arcade features numerous redemption prize games, as well as driving skills and shooting combat games. 2-10p Mon-Thu, 2-11p Fri, 10a-11p Sat and 10a-10p Sun; $3-$30 plus $1.50 glasses rental for mini golf; $4-$7 for laser tag; $24.99 unlimited play; specials available 6-10p weeknights.

Vegas Indoor Skydiving

200 Convention Center Drive, 702731-4768; vegasindoorskydiving.com

America’s first indoor skydiving facility, complete with a vertical wind tunnel, mesh trampoline floor and foam-padded walls — experience body flight and the free-fall sensation during a simulated skydiving session. 9:45a-8p daily; $75 first-time single flight; $40 second flight, same day; $350 for 15-minute block with two to five flyers; $200 book of five flights for one person. No age limit but weight guidelines apply. Participants younger than 18 years old must fly with an adult.

ART/CULTURE/EDUCATION

National Atomic Testing Museum

755 E. Flamingo Road, 702-794-5151; nationalatomictestingmuseum.org Features one of the most comprehensive collections of nuclear history — more than 12,000 unique artifacts relating to atomic testing, the Nevada Test Site, the Cold War and nuclear and radiological science and technology. The current display includes thousands of rare photographs, videos, artifacts, scientific and nuclear reports and data and one-of-a-kind scientist collections, as well as the Area 51 — Myth or Reality exhibit. 10a-5p Mon-Sat and noon-5p Sun; free-$20. Children under 17 must be accompanied by an adult.

Barrick Museum

UNLV campus, 4505 S. Maryland Parkway, 702-895-3381; unlv.edu/ barrickmuseum/about-the-barrick The museum’s goal is to provide an engaging space consisting of works of art and cultural objects that represent past and present cultures, as well as artistic creativity, to promote the understanding of art as an enduring human endeavor. 9a-5p MonWed and Fri, 9a-8p Thu and noon-5p Sat; free; suggested voluntary contribution: $5 adults, $2 children and seniors.

Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art

Inside Bellagio hotel-casino, 3600 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-693-7871; bellagio.com/attractions/galleryof-fine-art.aspx This fine-art gallery features rotating exhibitions that include paintings, sculptures and more created by renowned artists ranging from Picasso to Warhol. The artworks showcased are drawn from prestigious internationally known museums and private collections. An audio tour of the gallery is included in the price of admission. 10a-8p daily; $14 for Nevada residents, $12 for students, teachers and military, free for ages 12 and younger. Locals night 5-7p Wed; $8 with Nevada ID. Annual memberships available.

NEVADA PUBLIC RADIO

RECYCLING DAY Shred your old paperwork, recycle glass, aluminum and plastic. Bring your old appliances, computers and cell phones. We will also be taking gently used items for donation, including clothes, jewelry, housewares, home décor and more. You can also bring all your unused medication for safe and confidential destruction.

ALL FOR FREE! Bi-annual event:

April 25 and November 15 (8am-noon) More information at knpr.org

PRESENTING SPONSOR:

Bodies ... The Exhibition

Inside Luxor hotel-casino, 3900 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-492-3960; luxor. com/entertainment/bodies.aspx This one-of-a-kind exhibit features nine

PARTICIPATING SPONSORS:

PILL TAKE BACK SPONSORED BY:

ca e coalition

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rooms, each dedicated to different functions of the human body, including the circulatory, digestive, muscular, nervous and respiratory systems. Displays showcase 13 preserved whole-body specimens and more than 260 organs and parts. 10a-10p daily; $24-$32, free for children ages 3 and younger.

Clark County Museum

1830 S. Boulder Highway, Henderson, 702-455-7955; clarkcountynv.gov/ depts/parks/pages/clark-countymuseum.aspx Located on this 30-acre site is a unique collection of historic homes that re-creates the daily lifestyle of the decade in which each was built, the Ghost Town and Mining Trail, and a contemporary pueblo-style exhibit hall that presents a timeline of Southern Nevada from prehistoric to modern times. The exhibit hall also features changing art and artifacts, as well as special themed displays. 9a-4:30p daily; $1-$2. Museum memberships available.

The Discovery Children’s Museum

833 Las Vegas Blvd. N., 702-382-3445; discoverykidslv.org This nonprofit museum inspires kids to want to learn! It consists of nine hands-on exhibits that feature interactive science, sliding and climbing structures, green living, design and engineering challenges, role-playing and problem-solving, the art of investigation, the elements of art and more. Also on display is a traveling featured exhibit. Winter hours (through May): 9a-4p Tue-Fri and 10a-5p Sat, noon-5p Sun, Summer hours (June through Labor Day): 10a-5p Mon-Sat and noon-5 p.m. Sun; $14.50 or free to members, children younger than 1 year old and adults 100+. Children younger than age 13 must be accompanied by an adult.

Hoover Dam

30 miles southeast of Las Vegas, 702-494-2517; usbr.gov/lc/hoover dam Drawing more than a million visitors annually, the Hoover Dam is considered one of the 20th century’s top 10 construction projects. The one-hour guided Hoover Dam Tour provides a unique way to see, learn and appreciate this immense undertaking. The tour includes visitor access through the power plant and passageways within the dam, where guests will learn about the dam’s construction and see a panoramic view of eight of the dam’s enormous generators. Also included is admission to the Visitor Center. 8a-5p (Visitor Center), 9:25a-3:55p (power plant tour) and 9:30a-3:30p (dam tour); $10 (parking), free-$10 (Visitor Center), free-$15 (power plant tour), $30 (dam tour); no children under 8 years of age permitted on dam tour.

Las Vegas Natural History Museum

900 Las Vegas Blvd. N., 702-384-3466; lvnhm.org

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With nine permanent interactive exhibits, as well as traveling exhibits, this private nonprofit institution educates the community in the natural sciences, such as wildlife, ecosystems and cultures. Permanent exhibits include dinosaurs, Egyptian treasures, wild mammals, African jungle animals and prehistoric primates, Mojave Desert plants and animals, marine life and terrestrial animals, a young scientist center with computers and microscopes, and geological natural resources and minerals. 9a-4p daily; free-$10. Membership program available.

coaster, eight premium, two large, three junior and four family rides. And it keeps the fun going with seven featured attractions where guests can enjoy rock climbing, bungee jumping, miniature golf, midway and video arcade games, clown shows, bowling or navigating a maze of lasers. 10a-9p Sun; 11a-6p Mon-Thu; 10a-midnight Fri-Sat (hours may vary); $5-$12 per ride; $29.95 regular (48 inches or taller) all-day pass and $17.95 junior (under 48 inches tall) all-day pass.

Nevada Southern Railway

Bellagio hotel-casino, 3600 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-693-7111; bellagio.com/attractions/ botanical-garden.aspx Guests can leisurely stroll through and take in the enticing sights and smells that fill the conservatory’s seasonally themed gardens, which are made up of beautiful, captivating displays of plants, flowers, trees, water features and more. The gardens present changing themes that reflect the holidays, seasons and Chinese New Year and are meticulously maintained by 140 expert horticulturists. Open 24/7, free.

601 Yucca St., Boulder City, 702-486-5933; nevadasouthern.com Climb aboard an authentic open-air car or air-conditioned/heated Pullman coach for a 3.5-mile train ride and learn about the history of the railway dating back to the 1930s, when it brought supplies to the Hoover Dam project. 10-11:30a and 1-2:30p Sat-Sun; $10 adults, $5 children 4-11 years, free for kids 3 years and younger.

Nevada State Museum, Las Vegas

Inside Springs Preserve, 309 S. Valley View Blvd., 702-486-5205; springspreserve.org/attractions/ nsm.html Focusing on the prehistory, history and natural history of Nevada, this two-level, 70,000-square-foot museum features a 13,000-square-foot permanent exhibit gallery that informs visitors about the state’s geology, early flora and fauna, Native Americans and first settlers, mining and railroad histories, the Hoover Dam, the Atomic Era and more. 10a-6p Thu-Mon; admission included with paid general admission to Springs Preserve, $4.95$9.95 for Nevada residents, $10.95-$18.95 general admission and free for Preserve members.

Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition

Inside the Luxor hotel-casino, 3900 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-2624400; luxor.com/entertainment/ Titanic.aspx This 25,000-square-foot exhibit brings to life the wonder and tragedy of the world’s most famous ocean liner, including 250 authentic recovered artifacts and re-creations of some of the most popular rooms of the ship. 10a-10p daily; $32 adults, $30 seniors 65+, $24 children 4-12 years, free for children 3 years and younger and $29 for locals with valid ID.

ENTERTAINMENT/ATTRACTIONS

The Adventuredome

Circus Circus hotel-casino, 2880 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-794-3939; adventuredome.com America’s largest indoor theme park at five acres offers visitors both thrill and traditional carnival rides that include two

Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens

Bonnie Springs Ranch Old Nevada

16395 Bonnie Springs Road, 702-875-4191; bonniesprings.com Originally a stopover for wagon trains heading to California down the Old Spanish Trail, Bonnie Springs now features a replica of an authentic 1880s mining town where live performances, a hanging and gunfight reenactments take place in the street! Plus: A petting zoo, horseback riding, pony rides, a train ride, motel and full-service restaurant and bar. 10:30a-5p (until 6p in summer) daily; $7-$10.

Ethel M Chocolate Factory & Cactus Garden

2 Cactus Garden Drive, Henderson, 702-435-2608; ethelm.com Not only can visitors take a self-guided Ethel M factory tour, learn about making chocolates and get a free sample, they can explore the Botanical Cactus Garden, touted as Nevada’s largest. The garden features four acres and more than 300 species of plants. And be sure to stop back around Christmastime for the garden’s annual holiday lighting. 8:30a-6p daily (garden) and 8:30a-4:30p Mon-Fri (factory); free and open to public.

Hershey’s Chocolate World

Inside New York-New York hotel-casino, 3790 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-437-7439; hersheyschocolateworldlasvegas.com This whimsical two-story retail attraction features 13,000 square feet of all things Hershey’s — personalize chocolate bar wrappers, and star in a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup TV ad. Check out the Statue of Liberty chocolate sculpture and Empire State Building made of Hershey’s bars. 9a-11p daily; free admission.

The Lion Habitat Ranch

382 Bruner Ave., Henderson, 702-595-6666; lionhabitatranch.com An accredited facility by the Zoological Association of America, this is home to the lions that previously were at the MGM Lion Habitat attraction on the Las Vegas Strip. At the ranch, the public can get a private tour; interact with new cubs; participate in a three- to four-hour Trainer for a Day program in which guests are instructed in such lion care activities as preparing daily food, cleaning a cage, feeding, watering and bathing; or book a Feast with Beast catered lunch or dinner for up to 10 people where they will be surrounded by lions watching their every move. 11a-3p Fri-Mon; $20 per local adult and one child age 4-14, $8 per extra child, free for children younger than 3 years and $50 per local family; nonresident prices range from $10-$60.

Madame Tussauds Las Vegas

Inside Grand Canal Shoppes at The Venetian, 3377 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-862-7800; madametussauds.com/ lasvegas Featuring nearly 100 lifelike wax figures within seven themed settings — the Sports Arena, TV Studio and Music Room, Viva Las Vegas, Club Tussauds nightclub, The Hangover Experience and Marvel Super Heroes 4-D Experience — visitors will have up-close and interactive encounters with the likes of Shaq, Chuck Liddell, Wayne Brady, Jerry Springer, Michael Jackson, Beyoncé, the Rat Pack, Elvis, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lopez, Hugh Hefner, Hulk, Iron Man and more. Hours vary; $29.95 for locals ages 4+ or purchase online for $19.47 (minimum of two ticket purchase required), free for children 3 years and younger.

The Planetarium

At College of Southern Nevada, 3200 E. Cheyenne Ave., North Las Vegas, 702-651-4138; csn.edu/ planetarium Southern Nevada’s only public planetarium presents programs to the public and local schools utilizing a high-definition hemispheric video projection that creates virtual realities on a domed screen above the audience. As an added bonus, after the 8 o’clock showing, the telescopes at the Student Observatory are open for viewing when the weather is clear. 6p, 7p and 8p Fri; 3:30p, 6p, 7p and 8p Sat; no late seating. General: $6; Discount: $4 seniors 55+, children younger than 12 years, CSN students and youth groups.

Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden

Inside Mirage hotel-casino, 3400 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-791-7188; miragehabitat.com/pages/garden_ main.asp Legendary magicians Siegfried Fischbacher and Roy Horn have worked for

years to help save endangered animals, primarily white tigers and lions. Modeled after these animals’ natural habitat, this open-air tropical environment that the duo created as part of their conservation effort is filled with palm trees, lush foliage and simulated mountain terrain and is also home to black panthers, golden tigers and leopards. 10a-5:30p daily (hours may vary); $19.95 adults, $14.95 children 4-12 years, free for children 3 years and younger. Annual passes also available.

PARENT RESOURCES

Baby’s Bounty

840 Rancho Drive #4-556, 702-485-2229; babysbounty.org This 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization provides essential new and gently used infant clothing and gear, such as car seats, bottles, teethers and toys (new only), and baby carriers, receiving blankets, diaper bags, bath tubs, reclining strollers, bouncy seats and more, to babies born to victims of domestic abuse, teen mothers and low-income families. Call or email for assistance, or to volunteer or donate.

The Children’s Free Clinic of Southern Nevada

1140 Almond Tree Lane, 702-826-2300; cfcsnv.org In partnership with the nonprofit organization Children’s Medical Assistance Inc., which gives uninsured and underinsured children the opportunity to receive the same medical care as the more fortunate through community and professional partnerships, this is the first and only completely free pediatric clinic in Nevada. The clinic offers immunizations and medical/lab services for children ages 0 to 18 years of age, as well as a free prescription drug program; school, sports and camp physicals; vision screenings; referrals to free/low-cost dental and vision care services; and Pap tests, pregnancy tests and testing/treatment of sexually transmitted diseases. No appointments are necessary and walkins are welcome. 8:30a-noon Mon-Fri (hours may vary); free.

Children’s Medical Assistance Inc.

1120 Village Center Circle #3-411, 702-823-4954; childrensmedical assistance.org A nonprofit organization dedicated to giving uninsured and underinsured children the opportunity to receive the same medical care as the more fortunate through community and professional partnerships, such as The Children’s Free Clinic of Southern Nevada. Other partnerships provide immunizations, children’s mental health services, free health school-based clinics for Clark County School District students and more.

Head Start

702-387-0179 for all locations; nvhsa.net This federal government-created and -funded program helps lower-income children up to 5 years of age and their families gain access to various social services and development programs, such as educational programs, free medical and dental care, and overall child development assistance. Parents may be able to receive assistance through the program to gain long-term self-sufficiency in terms of finding a job or other social services.

Helping Kids Clinic

968 E. Sahara Ave., 702-732-7001; facebook.com/pages/Helping-Kids-Clinic/152921040434 Treating about 10,000 kids up to age 18 annually, this private 501(c)3 nonprofit organization’s goal is to provide affordable medical services to under-served and uninsured children in the Las Vegas area who cannot afford health care. The clinic is staffed with three to six medical doctors and advanced practice registered nurses who offer such medical services as immunizations, wellness checks, daycare, sport and camp physicals, Denver screening, minor illness care, newborn screenings and TB tests. Bilingual specialists are available. Call to schedule an appointment Mon-Fri; $10 donation to cover office visit, though no child will be turned away for family’s inability to pay.

HopeLink of Southern Nevada

178 Westminster Way, Henderson, 702-566-0576; link2hope.org The mission of this Family Resource Centers program, which is funded by a grant from the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services, is “to build a better community by preventing homelessness, keeping families intact, and promoting self-sufficiency.” Since its beginnings, the organization has made such notable contributions as distributing school supplies, backpacks, clothing and books to schoolchildren; assisting families with rent and utilities; establishing a literacy program that is held in 12 at-risk elementary schools; providing food, bus passes and parenting and life skills classes, and parental resources; assistance with job searches and interviews. 8a-6p Mon-Thu.

Nevada Department of Health and Human Services

Multiple locations, dwss.nv.gov Offers numerous agencies and family resources to assist with child support enforcement, child care and development, professional development, energy, food, financial and medical assistance to Nevada families, the disabled and elderly. 8a-5p Mon-Fri.

The Nevada Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants & Children (WIC)

Multiple locations, nevadawic.org

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For more than 40 years, this federally funded short-term special supplemental nutrition program has been providing free nutritious foods, nutrition education, breastfeeding support, and health and social services referrals to pregnant, postpartum and breastfeeding women, infants and children younger than 5 years of age who are at nutrition risk and meet income eligibility requirements. 7:30a-noon, 1-4:30p for all locations except Cambridge (8a-noon, 1-5p); free.

The Public Education Foundation

4350 S. Maryland Parkway, 702-799-1042; thepef.org The Public Education Foundation is an independent nonprofit organization that addresses the toughest challenges facing schools by championing educational strategies that foster innovation, promote excellence and produce results. Programs include Clark County READS, which offers a variety of literacy programs to children and families in Clark County to empower educators and students, while improving student attitudes toward reading; higher education scholarships; We R Community service-learning and volunteerism project for teens; Artists 4 Kidz; and Project Smile, which provides high-need children with dental health treatment and prevention services.

Social Services Department, Clark County

3885 S. Maryland Parkway; 1600 Pinto Lane; 2432 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. #D, North Las Vegas; 522 E. Lake Mead Blvd. #4, Henderson; 702-455-4270 for all office locations; clarkcountynv.gov/depts/ social_service/Pages/ContactUs.aspx Provides a variety of assistance services and aid — emergency crisis and financial, medical, child care, protective services for seniors, help with rent and utility bills, food, transportation, debt and foreclosure, legal aid, cremation and burial and more — for needy residents of Clark County and Las Vegas who aren’t assisted by other federal, state or local government assistance programs. Offices open 8a-5p.

Southern Nevada Health District Immunization Program

Multiple locations, 702-759-0850; southernnevadahealthdistrict.org/ immunizations/clinic-locations.php The SNHD provides adolescent, backto-school, flu, immunizations and travel vaccine clinics. For children under 18 years of age, written consent must be provided to the health district from a parent or legal guardian at the time of service. Costs vary based on type of immunization; in addition to vaccine costs, an administrative fee of $16 per child for one vaccine and $25 per child for two or more vaccines is charged.

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Ultimate Summer Camp

at Alexander Dawson School 10845 W. Desert Inn Road, 702-253-2802; bgchevents.org The Alexander Dawson School, in partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada, runs an affordable payas-you-go summer camp program. Open to the public, the camp utilizes more than 15,000 square feet of indoor space, including the gymnasium, a large game room, cultural arts center, acting lab, science center and dining hall, as well as multiple outdoor fields and playgrounds. Campers also receive a healthy lunch and afternoon snack daily that are included in the weekly registration fee. Several camps offered weekly throughout summer beginning June 15, full nine-week package runs June 15-Aug. 14, 7a-6p Mon-Fri; $210/week or $1,700/full package; children in kindergarten through eighth grade.

SPORTS/RECREATION

Fit4Mom Stroller Strides Classes

Multiple locations, lasvegas. fit4mom.com A fitness program for moms and their babies, Stroller Strides classes offer moms a total body workout while their babies are engaged in songs and activities in their stroller. The program features hour-long classes that include a five-minute warm-up, 45 minutes of power walking with intervals of strength and body toning exercises using tubing, the stroller and the environment. The class concludes with 10 minutes of abs and stretching. Babies should be at least six weeks of age to participate, and they can be up to any age as long as they remain in the stroller. Moms should wear athletic shoes, bring a towel or mat for ground exercises and any type of stroller. Town Square: 8:30-9:30a Mon, Wed and Fri, 7-8a Tue and Thu; Tivoli Village at The District: 9-10a Tue, Thu and Sat; WomensCare Center: 1p Wed.; complimentary first class, then $11 per class with 10 Class Pass.

Helen Meyer Community Center

4525 New Forest Drive, near Flamingo and Tenaya, 702-455-7723; clarkcountynv.gov/Depts/parks/ Pages/community-center-helenmeyer.aspx This center’s amenities include ball fields, tennis courts, a recreation center, fitness course, walking course, playground, spray pool and picnic areas. The center also offers a variety of classes and events, including a 10-week Kindergarten Prep session, a 10-week Preschool Prep session and an open recreation program, which is a free after-school program for 6 to 12 year olds that provides homework time, sports, activities, arts & crafts, field trips and socialization. 8a-6p Mon-Fri; call for costs.

Henderson Multigenerational Center/ Aquatic Complex

250 S. Green Valley Parkway, Henderson, 702-267-5800; cityofhenderson.com/Parksand-recreation One of the largest recreational facilities in Nevada and the first facility of its kind in Southern Nevada, this 84,120-squarefoot center features an aquatic complex, including indoor and outdoor pools, a fitness center, walking-jogging track, dance and aerobics rooms, indoor cycling area, indoor multi-sport area with basketball court, rock climbing wall, Kids Corner, an art gallery, teaching kitchen, adult lounge with reading area and kitchenette and a game room. The center also offers community services that include AIMS free health screenings that provide echocardiogram and carotid artery test screenings, as well as SCORE’s free startup and small business counseling. Center: 6a-8p Mon-Thu, 6a-6p Fri and 9a-3p Sat; Indoor/Activity Pools: 6-11a and 1-8p MonThu, 6-11a and 1-6p Fri and 9a-3p Sat; call for pricing. Outdoor Pool: opens on Memorial Day weekend; call for hours.

Silver Mesa Recreation Center & Pool

4025 Allen Lane, North Las Vegas, 702-633-2550; cityofhenderson.com/ parks-and-recreation This 5-acre rec center provides numerous leisure activities, educational opportunities and athletic outlets, including a fully equipped fitness facility with free weights, circuit and cardiovascular machines, exercise classes, a gymnasium, swimming pool with waterslide and mushroom shower and shaded picnic areas. The center also offers classrooms, multipurpose rooms, and dance and art studios for arts & crafts activities, guitar and piano lessons, computer skills instruction and more for all ages. 9a7p Mon-Thu; 9a-2p Sat.

Whitney Ranch Recreation Center and Aquatic Complex

575 Galleria Drive, Henderson, 702-267-5860; cityofhenderson.com/ parks-and-recreation Located adjacent to the Whitney Ranch Aquatic Complex, the 41,000-square-foot center includes a fitness center, dance and aerobics room, gymnasium, courts for racquetball and wallyball, a Kids Corner, game room, classrooms and meeting rooms and a conference room. The state-of-theart aquatic complex offers two pools: an outdoor activity pool featuring 25-yard competition lanes, a shallow training area and water-play features that are open during summer months and indoor pool that is open year-round featuring a retractable roof, 10 competitive lanes, a shallow water instructional area and a wheelchair lift. Center: 6a-8p Mon-Thu; 6a-6p Fri and 9a-3p Sat; Indoor Pool: 5-11a and 1-8p Mon-Thu; 5-11a and 1-6p Fri, 9a-3p Sat; Activity Pool: opens Memorial Day weekend; call for pricing.

BRUNCH

Done Better Served Weekends Until 3:00

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BRIOITALIAN.COM TIVOLI VILLAGE | (702) 433-1233 TOWN SQUARE LAS VEGAS | (702) 914-9145