We have a new book review!
Three Paws &
Three Paws’ New Family was written by Karen Struck. With this book series, the author is encouraging children to "dream their life and live it".
The two-part series Three Paws and Three Paws’ New Family feature an Alaskan Grizzly cub named Boots. Boots sustains an injury that leaves him with a bit of a physical challenge. His dream has always been to be an expert salmon catcher, but this injury sets him back on his dream.
Read the book review of a fellow Live Grow Play Austin reader and enter for a chance to win your own copy. This is a set of 2 books and comes with a cute teddy bear.
With the statewide mask mandate currently in place and – although not required – many parents voluntarily and out of precaution wanting their kids under the age of 10 to wear a mask, the demand for kids face masks is high.
Marianne, a stay-at-home mom of three kids (4, 3 and 15 months) from Cedar Park, sews for fun all the time (costumes, linens, alterations, etc). Here's how she started her face mask business The Grateful Thread. Plus, see our beautiful masks she made for us.
Many children in and around Austin participate in the free or reduced meals programs at their school. When school is over for the summer it can be an expensive time for many families.
Fortunately, many schools and organizations in and around Austin offer a Summer Food Service Program where children age 18 and under can visit a summer meal site throughout the summer while school is out of session to receive free meals, snacks and participate in fun activities. Read on for participating locations.
Splash Pads are allowed to reopen. See below which splash pads are open and which splash pads are still closed.
Note: splash pads hours subject to change. Always check the splash pad's website before visiting.
As we all know, nursing homes, long-term care facilities, and assisted living communities have been hit extra hard by our current health crisis. As per the CDC, “Given their congregate nature and resident population served (e.g., older adults often with underlying chronic medical conditions), nursing home populations are at high risk of being affected by respiratory pathogens like COVID-19.” However, not only are they particularly vulnerable when it comes to their health, they’re also hit extra hard with isolation.
Many residents haven’t received in-person visits from family and friends since March, as most facilities limit community entry to essential visitors only (those necessary for resident care and community operations) and don’t allow in-house social visits, public events or outings.
In addition – and that is an ongoing situation and not specific to COVID-19 – some residents may not have family and friends close by or may not have visitors at all.
We therefore invite families in and around Austin to join us in bringing a smile to many sad faces, and this is how.
We did something super cool on Tuesday. Of course, we picked the hottest day of the week, but it was a blast and probably a once in a lifetime experience — although, we could do it again every Tuesday in June, September, and October (minus October 27).
So, what did we do? We rode our bikes on the only Formula 1 and MotoGP racetrack in the country — Austin's Circuit of The Americas!
In Austin, popular childcare options include day cares, nannies, mothers-day-out programs, stay-at-home parents, and possibly family members. There are pros and cons to every option, and there is no right childcare solution for every family.
Unfortunately for the Giovannoli family, they were stuck on waitlists for all of their top daycare options, nannies felt too expensive, and their families lived too far away. Out of necessity, parents Drew and Alexandra discovered the concept of a "nanny-share".
Learn more about nanny-share and nanny-share options in Austin.
While summer camps are able to open, many summer camp providers are still hesitant and have decided to either offer virtual summer camps only, or to offer both, virtual camps and in-person camps.
Virtual summer camps are — well, they're virtual, and not location-bound. Technically, a child in Austin, Texas could participate in a camp in Anchorage, Alaska this summer. However, we encourage you to support local businesses and give one of the following a try.
Water parks are allowed to reopen at
limited capacity. While most pools in the Austin area have not decided yet whether and when they will reopen, a few pools are now open.
Note: Pool hours subject to change. Always check the pool's website before visiting.
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Obviously, this is a difficult time for everybody and many local businesses are getting hit extremely hard. We therefore want to use our little platform and help in any way we can.
We asked local businesses to let us know of any products, services, or activities they're currently offering, that can help Austin families keep their kids busy and make this time as enjoyable as possible for their kids and their whole family. In the coming days, we will be introducing those offers on our blog. Sign up for our
newsletter, so you don't miss any of these awesome deals.
Read about Austin Youth Fitness' Home Running and Biking Groups for Pre-K to 8th Grade.