Talk about an adventure off the beaten path…STAR ECO Station, an Environmental Childrens Museum, is a hidden treasure tucked away in Rocklin.  I had no idea what was in store for us when we visited with our whole family, Grandma included.  The plan was to go on an outing the kids would enjoy but the grown-ups loved this place just as much!  We experienced hands-on lessons of ecology and environmentalism as we encountered beautiful tropical birds, exotic reptiles, and ocean life in a tropical jungle setting.

STAR ECO Station is an internationally award-winning  non-profit environmental education and exotic wildlife rescue center, dedicated to the mission of Preservation Through Education.  STAR ECO Station provides a last chance for illegal or abandoned at-risk exotic wildlife, as well as environmental education outreach programs.

What makes the STAR ECO Station such a great experience is the fact that a knowledgeable tour guide offers information about all the wildlife you see.  Your guide takes you through the reptile room, the bird room, and the ocean life room, telling interesting facts about each animal.   Our guide, Jamie, not only educated us but was able to answer all of the questions we had throughout our visit.  We were continually surprised by fun facts she shared with us.  We never knew that the Bearded Dragon only shows his beard when he feels threatened and that Parrots bond and mate for life.  We all loved that we were able to get so close to the wildlife and even touch a couple of the reptiles.

I am a fan of places that offer fun and education wrapped up in one and STAR ECO Station does just that!  Each one of the kids was fascinated by all that they saw and learned and, well, we grown-ups were too!

Click here to learn more about the STAR ECO Station and to see their upcoming events.  They also offer great birthday parties.

Hours:
Friday 1pm-5pm, Saturday 10am- 4pm, Sunday 12pm-4pm
Tours start every hour on the hour.  Last tour starts one hour before closing.

Admission:
$6.00 for Kids, $5.00 for Kids under 16, 2 years and under are Free

STAR ECO Station
4465 Granite Drive, Suite 700
Rocklin, CA 95677
(916) 632-5437

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Fri, Sept 3 - Sun, Sept 6

1. Go back in time to the Wild West at Old Sacramento’s GOLD RUSH DAYS.
2. Be inspired and entertained at the CHALK IT UP! FESTIVAL.
3. Build a Football Display at Home Depot’s KIDS WORKSHOP.
4. Relax and enjoy STORYTIME at Barnes & Noble.
5. See YOU’RE A GOOD MAN, CHARLIE BROWN put on by the Fair Oaks Theatre Festival.
6. CRAFT WITH ARTWORKS at the Central Library.
7. Last weekend to pet the BARN ANIMALS and RIDE THE STEAM TRAIN at Hagan Community Park.
8. Take a GUIDED NATURE WALK at the beautiful Cosumnes River Preserve.
9. Enjoy dancing and great food at the Sacramento GREEK FESTIVAL.
10. Watch WILLY WONKA & THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY at Fairytale Town’s Movie Night.

Have a great Labor Day Weekend!

P.S.  It is the last weekend to enjoy most of Sacramento’s Spraygrounds…so take advantage!

Gold Rush Days in Old Sacramento are here this Labor Day weekend!  Sacramento’s 11th annual heritage celebration means more than 200 tons of dirt will be dumped on the streets of Old Sacramento as the annual festival “turns back the clock,” transforming Sacramento’s historic district into a scene straight out of the 1850s. Costumed re-enactors, Wild West gun fights, musicians playing period instruments, and many aspects of life during the Gold Rush will be highlighted during the four-day event.  There will be Dancing, Street Dramas, Pony & Wagon Rides, Gold Panning, Period Artifacts, Storytelling, Craft Making, Embarcadero Tent City, Ethnic Village, Period Musicians, Horse-Drawn Carriages & much more!

You can also stop by the Sacramento History Museum to mine for gold.  Visit the TrailMix.Net store’s blog by clicking here for more info on how kids can turn the gold into prizes!

Admission to Gold Rush Days is FREE and hours are as follows:

* Friday, September 3, 9am - 4 pm
* Saturday, September 4, 11am - 7pm
* Sunday, September 5, 11am - 7pm
* Monday, September 6, 11am - 4pm

Although the event is free, remember to bring money for parking.  The Old Sacramento Garage (2nd & I) and The Tower Bridge Garage (Front & Capitol Mall) will have a special event flat rate parking fee of $8.00.

For more information, call (916) 808-7777 or click here for the event website.  You can see a complete schedule of each day’s Live Music, Shoot-outs and Old-West Theatrics.

Fri, Aug 27th - Sun, Aug 29th

1. Picnic with your family at the HOT SUMMER NIGHTS CONCERT in Elk Grove.
2. Build a School Bus at Lowe’s BUILD AND GROW CLINIC.
3. Be entertained and eat refreshments at the Robbie Waters Library GRAND OPENING.
4. Relax and enjoy STORYTIME at Barnes & Noble.
5. Enjoy music, water, fun and sun at the CHILDREN’S MUSIC FESTIVAL.
6. Take an entertaining and history-rich UNDERGROUND TOUR in Old Sacramento.
7. Pet the cute BARN ANIMALS at Hagan Community Park.
8. Eat ice cream and travel to the Wild West at Fairytale Town’s CRYSTAL ICE CREAM DREAM.
9. Meet animals from the AMAZING AMAZON with Wild Things.
10.See YOU’RE A GOOD MAN, CHARLIE BROWN put on by the Fair Oaks Theatre Festival.

Target is sponsoring Free-Admission Days at the Sacramento Zoo!  If your kids have not gone back to school, then head over there for the whole day.  If they’ve already started back, then surprise them for an after-school outing!  Please consider bringing a new, unwrapped item to donate for their Back-to-School Supply Drive to help kids in our community.

When: Monday, August 23 & Monday, August 30; 9 am to 4 pm

Where: Sacramento Zoo, 3930 West Land Park Drive

More info: Call (916) 508-5888 or www.saczoo.com

Fri, August 20th - Sun, August 22nd

1. Picnic with your family at the HOT SUMMER NIGHTS CONCERT in Elk Grove.
2. Bounce and eat pizza at Bounce Spot’s FAMILY BOUNCE NIGHT.
3. Roast marshmallow’s and listen to stories at the MAIDU FAMILY CAMPFIRE EVENING.
4. Meet a Geologist and do hands-on GEOLOGY activities at the Discovery Museum.
5. Giggle at SLEEPING BEAUTY IN SPACE at Fairytale Town.
6. Take an entertaining and history-rich UNDERGROUND TOUR in Old Sacramento.
7. Pet the cute BARN ANIMALS at Hagan Community Park.
8. Take a GUIDED NATURE TOUR through Effie Yeaw’s Maidu Village.
9. Enjoy songs and stories at Central Library’s BABYSIT LAPSIT STORYTIME.
10. See how the pioneers survived Culture Shock at SUTTER’S FORT DEMONSTRATION DAY.

*You can also see details of these events on our Upcoming Events Calendar.

Happy Friday!

Yesterday morning, Sacramento Sidetracks was lucky enough to be featured on the KCRA Morning News!  I was interviewed by Deirdre Fitzpatrick about my Top 3 Picks for FREE things to do before the Summer comes to an end.  It was such a fun experience!  You can watch the interview by clicking here.

Here are the Top 3 Picks that I mentioned:

1.  Spraygrounds - local parks with great water features.

2.  Hagan Petting Barn - cute barn animals in a “real” barn.

3.  TrailMix.Net - Old Sac Scavenger Hunt and free art project.

This is the place for hands-on science discovery!  The Explorit Science Center in Davis features interactive exhibits, a Discovery Room, and a Wet Lab.  Their mission is to “engage people in science experiments that touch all our lives.”

Whether your kids are already interested in science or you want to get them interested, there is no better place to explore.  My kids are still young and haven’t had any experience with science yet.  We walked in the door and they were instantly in engaged.  They wanted to check out every single fossil in the Discovery Room and know exactly what they were.

We moved on to the interactive exhibits and I was amazed at how Explorit has come up with such fun ways to teach important principles of science.  We learned things like:

What happens to the energy of a moving object.
Which objects fly best.
What happens to your body when you exercise.
How gears work.

To get the most out of it, be prepared to be hands-on right along with your kids.  Each experiment has step-by-step instructions that are easy to follow.  Kids that are over eight may be able to figure them out on their own, but younger kids need help understanding the how and why.  There was a friendly, knowledgeable staff on hand that helped us out when we were a little unsure of how to do something.

Upstairs, we conducted little experiments in the Wet Lab.  My four-year-old loved sending scents through a large tube with a fan and weighing the liquids.  Even as I am writing this post, he is looking at the picture and recalling that he learned “which one was heavier”!  My seven-year-old was in love with the craft room that was filled with recycled materials that she could be creative with.  My two-year-old’s favorite spot was the booth he could sit at and play with plastic molecules.  There was definitely something for everyone!

Check this place out and be prepared for a wonderful combination of fun and learning!

Hours:
Saturdays & Sundays: 11 am - 5 pm (both floors)
Tuesdays: 10 am - 5 pm (first floor only 10-2:00; both floors 2-5:00)

Admission:
General Admission $4.00, Kids 3 and under FREE
*FREE Admission Day is the 3rd Tuesday of each month!
*Admission is FREE on the first weekend of each month to individuals with Bank of America credit or debit cards through the bank’s “Museums on Us” program.

Explorit Science Center
2801 2nd Street
Davis, CA 95618
(530) 756-0191

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Fri, Aug 13th - Sun, Aug 15th

1. Picnic with your family at the HOT SUMMER NIGHTS CONCERT in Elk Grove.
2. Enjoy music, dance, art and food at the BANANA FESTIVAL.
3. BUILD A BUG BOX at the Lowe’s Build and Grow Clinic.
4. Create a BUTTERFLY RING at the Discovery Museum.
5. Enjoy SLEEPING BEAUTY IN SPACE at Fairytale Town.
6. Meet ANIMALS OF THE WORLD at the Carmichael Library.
7. Pet the cute BARN ANIMALS and RIDE THE STEAM TRAIN at Hagan Park.
8. Play games, eat treats, and sing Karaoke at the Central Library’s Summer Reading FINALE PARTY.
9. Take an entertaining and history-rich UNDERGROUND TOUR in Old Sacramento.
10. Visit any one of the NATIONAL PARKS for FREE!

The Sacramento River Cats and Raley’s & Bel-Air are  teaming up to host Mommy & Me Day on August 11 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Raley Field.  The free event is open for children ages 6-and-under and is an for parents to enjoy a day at Raley Field with their children!

Click Here for Special Mommy & Me Ticket Offer

When: Wednesday, August 11th, 2010, from 10 a.m.-1 p.m.; Registration begins at 9 a.m.

Where: At Raley Field.  Registration begins at 9 a.m. through the On-Deck Shop on the concourse.  Activities on the field will begin at 10 a.m.

Who:  Moms (and Dads too) with children 6-and-under.

How: Save time on the day of the event by downloading your waivers online (Click Here).  Waivers can also be filled out on-site during registration.

*** - They strongly advise parents to leave strollers in their cars as there is limited space.

Highlights:

• SAVE TIME!  Click Here for a pre-registration form
• Field Opens at 10 a.m.
• Non-Game Day
• Free Parking (Parking Lot B)
• Free Admission
• Free snacks and drinks provided by Raley’s & Bel-Air
• Special visit from your favorite mascot, Dinger
• Raley Field Concessions will be open
• On-Deck Shop open
• On-field games and activities
• Sponsored by Raley’s & Bel-Air
• Children 6 & under welcome with adult
• Call (916) 376-4676 with questions