Looking for things to do with the kids this summer? Listen to the podcast of my radio interview this past Saturday on Parent Talk with Linda O'Connor on The Breeze Buffalo, FM 102.9, AM 1230 Follow this link to the podcast page http://breezebuffalo.com/podcasts/parent-talk

Fun Wow! at Fantasy Island

Today was the annual school day for my youngest son's school at Martin's Fantasy Island on Grand Island. We spent the entire day there! Luckily our son was able to meet up with some of his friends, so my husband and I didn't have to go on any wild rides!

It's pretty neat that we can take our kids to a place we visited as children and it hasn't changed that much.....well maybe it has, there was no water park years ago. It's a nice place to take younger children, as there is a lot for them to do, yet it isn't overwhelming and there are not a lot of teenagers there like you find at other parks, so the younger kids feel less intimidated. We had a lot of fun!

Ribbon cutting at WBBZ studios

I have to admit that I have been lax in posting to my blog that last several weeks....hopefully I will be able to post on a more regular basis. Anyhow, tonight my oldest son and I attended the ribbon cutting for WBBZ TV's new studio which is located in the Eastern Hills Mall. I think that this TV station will be a great addition to Western New York. You can read more about the station and it's mission on their website www.wbbz.tv/

Updated website

Updated website now activated
http://www.westernnewyorkexplorersguide.com/ Still a work in progress, but getting there.

Updated website

For the time being use the following link to access my website, which has been updated http://wnyexplorersguide.sharepoint.com/. I'm still working on getting my custom domain to transfer to the new host

Wizard of Oz exhibit at Museum of Play

We took a trip to Rochester and visited the Museum of Play today. One of the current exhibits is the Wizard of Oz. It was a really cute exhibit. As with previous visits, we spent almost the entire day at the museum. My youngest, who is almost ten really enjoys going there, but probably in the next few years he will decide he is too old for it!

Afterward, we had dinner at one of our favorite Rochester restaurants, The King and I, which has really good Thai food. Even my husband, who is not really big on Thai food, enjoyed it.

Wine trail events this weekend

Below is a press release I received about an upcoming wine trail event that I thought I'd share with people. sounds like a nice event.
For
Immediate
Release
April 10, 2012
Contact: Julie Pfadt, executive director (814)
746-8414

Lake Erie Wine
Country to Host Popular Wine & Art Saturday

Lake Erie Wine Country, an association of 23
wineries between Silver Creek, NY and North East, PA, announces its annual Wine
& Art Saturday which will be held on April 14th. Guests will enjoy wine
tasting while perusing works of art by 32 member artists of the North Shore Arts
Alliance in Chautauqua County
and the North East (PA) Arts Council.

The artists will be on hand at the 21
participating wineries to display, sell, and demonstrate - from painters and
sculptors to photographers and glass artisans. Featured artists include eleven
members of the Chautauqua-Lake Erie Art Trail, the North Shore Arts Alliance’s
signature event.

This is a FREE EVENT. No tickets or reservations
are required! Event hours are 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Guests are invited to stop at any of the
participating wineries in any order to enjoy wine and art--a natural pairing.
For winery locations or other information, see: www.lakeeriewinecountry.org, www.facebook.com/LakeErieWineCountry . For more
information on participating artists, see www.northshoreartsalliance.com.

Lake Erie Wine Country, formerly the
Chautauqua-Lake Erie Wine Trail, is a non-profit organization founded to
“support and to market the wine and grape industries in Chautauqua County, New
York and Erie County, Pennsylvania through the promotion of excellence in wine
products, in winery and associate member facilities, and in the tourism
experience in the region.”

Featured Artists at New York Wineries:
· 21 Brix Winery: Tom Annear (painting); George Petrella (painting)
· Blueberry Sky Farm Winery: Works from Sue Wolfe (painting)
· Johnson Estate Winery: Lilla Johnson (painting); Sue Murphy (jewelry); Harold Nass (bird
sculpture)
· Liberty Vineyards: Sue Mackay (painting); Nancy Hutchinson (painting)
· Mazza Chautauqua Cellars: Elora Esce (photography)
· Merritt Estate Winery: Bill Smith (photography)
· Noble Winery: James Hoggard (photography); Sue Wolfe (painting)
· Quincy Cellars Winery: Alberta Parker (drawing); Tim Sivertsen (painting)
· Seven Vines Winery: Bill Karrow (photography)
· Sparkling Ponds Winery: Rebecca Tkawzyk (mixed media & painting)
· Vetter Vineyards Winery: Linda Lavid (painting)
· Willow Creek Winery: Steve Yunghans (abstract painting)
· Woodbury Vineyards: Ronnie Lafferty

Featured Artists at Pennsylvania Wineries:
· Burch Farms Winery: Jack Paluh (wildlife & landscape painting)
· Courtyard Wineries: Sara Frye (stained glass); Laura Mikula (painting & pastel); Sue
Rochester (oil painting)
· Lakeview Wine Cellars: Tajana Roehl (photography); Tamara Maas (painting)
· Mazza Vineyards: Peggy Campbell (photography & mixed media)
· Penn Shore Vineyards: Christine French (mixed media); Bryan Toy (drawing, painting); Toni
Kelly (watercolor & calligraphy)
· Presque Isle Wine Cellars: Becky Samler (photography)
· South Shore Wine Company: John Ballard (woodworking & mixed media); Jon Miller
(painting, sculpture & collage); Vanessa Mazza (painting & mixed
media)