Come Dance! 2008

Totally Free Event

Butler Dance Education Center
501 W. 3rd St.
Austin  TX  78701

Think you can dance? Want to try? Ballet Austin hosts a day of free dance classes of all types — modern dance, tap, flamenco, hula, jazz, Broadway theater style and yes, ballet. The 40-minute classes start on the hour beginning at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m

There’s also ongoing previews of the family-friendly show Not Afraid of the Dark and a special ‘Nutcracker’ room decked with sets and costumes from the holiday spectacular and ready for your early holiday photo opportunity. Bring the camera and lots of film!

Other things to do in the neighborhood:

Austin Children’s Museum

201 Colorado St, Austin, TX 78701
Near the intersection of Colorado St and W 2nd St
(512) 472-2499 www.austinkids.org

Tuesday - Saturday: 10am-5pm
Community Night Wednesdays: 5-8pm
Sunday: Noon-5pm

Adult: $5.50
Children 2 yrs.and up: $5.50
Children 12-23 months: $3.50
Children under 12 months: FREE

Zilker Park/Barton Springs/Botanical Gardens

Swim Fees
Senior    $1.00
Adult     $3.00
Junior (12-17)   $2.00
Child (11- under)   $1.00
Parking fee at Zilker  $3.00 (March through September)

Bring the family to Austin early and and stay the day.  Picnic in Zilker Park.  Hike or bike the trail around Lady Bird Lake. Swim in the sacred waters of Barton Springs. Ride the train around Zilker Park. Rent a canoe on :Lady Bird Lake.

Austin Duck Adventures

Monday and Tuesday: 2 PM
Wednesday through Friday: 11 AM & 2 PM
Saturday & Sunday: 11 AM, 2 PM & 4 PM

All public tours depart from the Austin Visitor Information Center at 209 E. Sixth Street
Adults - $25.95 + tax
Children (2 and Under) - Free
Children (Age 3-12) - $15.95
Seniors and Students - $23.95 + tax

Bob Bullock State of Texas Museum

Visit the Bob Bullock State of Texas Museum and see The Dark Knight: The IMAX Experience.  Come see Batman six stories high as he fights the Joker and crime in Gotham City.

See the Bats!  See the Bats!

When and Where To See the Congress Avenue Bats:

The best bat views are in August when the young pups join their mothers in the nightly flights. It can take as long as 45 minutes for all the bats to exit the bridge. Flights normally occur around 8 to 8:30 pm but could be earlier or later. Call the Bat Hotline at 416-5700 ext. 3636 for times. In addition to lining up on the sidewalks along the Congress Avenue bridge there are other safer and popular spots for bat-watching:

• Austin American-Statesman public viewing area on the Southeast end of Congress Avenue.
• Cruises on Town Lake are another way to see the bats. Lone Star Riverboat and Capital Cruises offer bat-watching cruises.
• Watch the bats from the Shoreline Bar & Grill, T.G.I. Fridays (in the Radisson Hotel), or the Four Seasons Hotel.

Doesn’t it shound like a great weekend for the family.  Do as much or as little as you wish.  Spend all the time indoors to beat the heat or cool down naturally in Barton Springs.

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My mother, father and older brother and sister were born in New York City. I was the first native born Texan in my family. The first time we visited New York City, I was only five years old and remember being cold, ill, and wondering how Santa Claus was going to find us in a motel in New Jersey. I do remember seeing the Statue of Liberty and visiting family members.

As I grew older, I was happy to visit my family in New York. Growing up within a nuclear family means you miss family reunions, Christmas at Grandma’s and having a safe place to go when you need it. My extended family lived in the Bronx area of NYC. This is a very old part of the NYC and the apartments were built just after WWII. It was always exciting to stay there because you could not plug in more than one appliance at a time or you would blow circuit breakers. However, we could walk to Macy’s and to buy pizza, large hot soft pretzels and Italian ices. I could have lived on those four items.

My mother and I went to New York City three or four times before I left home. Each time, I was a little older and we did more sightseeing. We toured Manhattan and Brooklyn in a double decker bus. I liked the buses much more than the subways. We did use the subways to visit my aunts on my father’s side of the family. We ate lunch in the middle of Manhattan.

One tour gave us a ticket to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, but my mom did not like museums, so I went on my own. On the way, I met some young people and found out about all the things to do in New York. I went on a tour of the countryside on a motorcycle with these new friends and saw some truly beautiful lakes and byways within an hour of NYC.

If you are planning to travel to New York or other major city, read the online travel guides at the Trusted Tours & Attractions website. While you are there, make sure you sign up for Trusted Tours & Attractions eNewsletter for a chance to win a $150 iTunes Gift Card!

Happy trails!

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You may view and walk upon dinosaur tracks in many areas of Texas.

Austin

I will never forget when I was walking to class at University of Texas-Austin and stumbled upon this old building that housed an entire dinosaur trackway from the Paluxy River. These tracks are famous because they depict the tracking of a plant eating dinosaur by a meat eating dinosaur. These tracks are impressive and are currently undergoing restoration.

Big Bend

Many bones and fossils have been found in Big Bend. I am going to research it and put it together as a separate post.

Blanco River

Outside of Blanco Texas in the Blanco River, you will see sauropod tracks. Read this post for more information: Have You Ever Seen Sauropod Tracks.

Boerne

The Boerne Lake Spillway has been made off limits to visitors. You may see casts of these tracks at the Cibilo Nature Center.

Canyon Lake

Heritage Museum of the Texas Hill Country has the most dinosaur tracks in Texas. These tracks were made formed in the upper part of the Glen Rose Formation, approximately 100 million years ago.

Canyon Lake Gorge

The Canyon Lake Gorge was created by floodwaters that escaped over the Canyon Lake Spillway during the Flood Event of 2002. A group of paleontologists from the University of Texas–Austin are “documenting fossil invertebrate fauna” within the Glen Rose formation exposed by the Gorge. “One especially fossiliferous unit has yielded specimens representing at least 60 species of 40 genera.” These fossils will be exhibited in the new Canyon Gorge visitor’s center. I have heard that there are dinosaur tracks, but cannot find any mention of them on the Canyon Lake Gorge site.

Dinosaur Valley State Park

The Paluxy River is one of the more scenic tributaries of the Brazos River and widely known for the dinosaur tracks exposed at various places in its streambed. Some of the tracks were collected and placed on exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History in New York; other tracks collected nearby were put on exhibit at the Texas Memorial Museum in Austin. Luckily, there are many left to view!

Dinosaur Valley State Park contains some of the best preserved dinosaur tracks in the world. The tracks are located in the Paluxy River, so call to make sure they are visible: 254/897-4588 The park’s Interpretive Center features a section of these sauropod and carnosaur (meat-eating dinosaur) tracks.

Facilities at the park include campsites with water and electric hookups, a picnic table, fire ring and/or grill; restrooms with showers. Backpack campsites are 1 to 2.5 mile hike in the North Primitive area (no restrooms in the area, water is available at the trail head); Day use only horseback riding is allowed in the South Equestrian Area; There are 12 miles of hike and bike trails. The area hosts many species of both resident and migrant birds including the endangered Golden-Cheek Warbler and the Black-Capped Vireo along with wildturkeys.

Fort Worth Museum of Science and History

Dinosaur Roundup will be on display June 7 through September 27, 2008 on the first floor of the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, the temporary home of the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History while a new facility is built. Explore Lone Star Dinosaurs online.

Houston Museum of Natural Science Hall of Paleontology

The Houston Museum of Natural Science’s Hall of Paleontology contains more than 450 fossils and fossil replicas, providing a vivid glimpse into the incredible 3.5-billion year story of life on Earth. From the humble trilobite to the mighty Tyrannosaurus rex, Visit their blog, BEYONDbones.

Waco Mamnoth Site

In 1978, two local residents found skeletal remains of 25 mammoths thought to have lived 68,000 years ago. Researchers believe all these mammoths died at this one place, from the same cause. The find is not available to the public, but plans for a National Park are on the table.

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May 2

Custom Car and Truck Show, Conroe. Top 75, Top 10 Under Construction, Best of Show Car, Best of Show Truck, Best Engine, Best Undercarriage, Best Interior, Best Debut Car.

May 3

Mayfest, Driftwood, Texas, 10am-6pm, free. Enjoy a beautiful day on the grounds of the historical church. Bake sale, food, vendors, silent auction, activities for children, live music including Nashville Recording Artist, Jill Parr.

The Heritage Gala, Dripping Springs, 6-11 pm, reservation. Relax under the stars and 150-year-old oak trees on the grounds of Dr. Pound Pioneer Farmstead Historic Museum. Wine tasting, gourmet dining, dancing to swing/jazz band, guided tours of historic homestead, silent and live auction.

Spring Fling, Gainesville, 10am-5pm. in Leonard Park. Eddie Coker, children’s entertainer will keep the youngsters busy, while parents explore the arts and crafts vendors. Radio Disney, Talley Fun and Games carnival, Little Britches Rodeo, Critterman and his Animal Ambassadors, Chuck Wagon Cooking and Blacksmith demonstrations, dog agility and obedience exhibits and miniature train round out the fun.

May 3-4

Comfort Village Spring Antiques Show, Comfort, (Sa) 10am-5pm, (Su) 10am-4pm, Comfort Park on Highway 27. Look for stoneware and baskets, pewter, cupboards and farm tables, benches, shelves, architectural artifacts, textiles and linens and antique tools.

Heritage Home Tour 2008 : Roses of San Antonio Street, San Marcos, (Sa) 12 noon-6pm, (Su) 12 noon-5pm, San Antonio Street, tickets needed. A self-paced tour of 6 historic homes built between 1887 and 1920, spanning American Foursquare, Queen Anne, Pioneer Farmhouse, Greek Revival and other styles. Ticket holders receive 2008 Homes Tour map and descriptions. A beautiful selection of antique roses will be for sale at the tour ticket sales center on Mitchell Street, between W. San Antonio and MLK Streets.

Texas Bison Festival, Hwy 290 East of Stonewall, (Sa&Su)10 am to 6pm, LBJ State Park, Adults $5; Children under 10 free. See a live bison herd and witness the Native American blessing of the herd. Visit the 1800s Texas Living History area, enjoy cowboy music and poetry, explore the farming lifesyle. In the Native American cultural area, you will enjoy dancers, music, storytellers; learn the art of bow making, flint knapping and fire making. Try a Bison burger or Bison sausage.

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Texas Independence Day Celebration
March 1-2, 2008 10am-5pm
Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historic Site

Visit this historic site during the 172nd birthday celebration! Enjoy the free two-day historic festival, with folk in period dress, craft demonstrations, military reenactments and music.

Visit Texas authors and have them sign your favorite book about Texas.

View the hand painted lithographs by naturalist John James Audubon, Audubon’s Creations: His Texas Legacy.

Colonel Travis (in spirit) will be on hand to convey why he and 188 other heroes chose to make a stand in San Antonio de Bexar on March 6, 1836.

Watch Gone to Texas, a musical production about the life of Sam Houston or Once Upon a Time in Texas, songs and stories from Texas History.

The historic site includes:

• Independence Hall-relive the moment Texas was created with a tour through the replica constructed on the cornerstones of the original building where Independence was declared. Tours throughout the weekend.
• Star of the Republic Museum-Delve into Texas’ colorful past through the award-winning exhibits and hands-on activities at this outstanding museum. Open 10–5 daily.
• Demonstrators Trail-Period craft demonstrators and reenactment camps bring the past to life with displays throughout the weekend. Located between the Museum and the Visitors Center; also in the Museum.
• Barrington Living History Farm–Visit the home of the last President of Texas, Anson Jones, and learn what life was like on an 1850’s cotton farm complete with outdoor kitchen, oxen, hogs, chickens and chores. Open 10–5 daily.

Interested in Texas and the fight for independence? The historic Texas Independence Trail is a road trip that takes you

Right-click HERE to download the Texas Independence Trail brochure.

Here is a list of the State Parks and Historic Sites on or near to the Independence Trail.

• Bastrop State Park, Bastrop
• Battleship TEXAS State Historic Site, La Porte
• Brazos Bend State Park, Needville
• Buescher State Park, Smithville
• Casa Navarro State Historic Site, San Antonio
• Fannin Battleground State Historic Site, Fannin
• Galveston Island State Park, Galveston
• Goliad State Park, Goliad
• Lockhart State Park, Lockhart
• Monument Hill/Kreische Brewery State Historic Sites, La Grange
• Palmetto State Park, Gonzales
• San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site, La Porte
• Sebastopol State Historic Site, Seguin
• Sheldon Lake State Park, Houston
• Stephen F. Austin State Park, San Felipe
• Varner-Hogg Plantation State Historic Site, West Columbia
• Washington-on-the Brazos State Historic Site, Washington

Find information on any of these parks and historic sites at Texas Parks and Wildlife website HERE.

Note: The Alamo is NOT on the Independence Trail. The defenders of the Alamo held Santa Anna and his arm at bay to give Sam Houston and his ragtag militia time to develop into a fighting force that could defeat Santa Anna.

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