Topic: Family & Kids

The weather was fickle, but that didn't stop dozens of local 3rd-graders from heading to Betty Ford Alpine Gardens and Ford Amphitheater on May 15 to release the Painted Lady butterflies that had hatched in their classrooms. Watch a video of the 2007 Butterfly Launch.

Plum attended the J3 Junior Olympics 2008 opening ceremony in Vail Village and spoke with athletes about where they're from and how they prepare for competition.

Grammy award-winning family musician Dan Zanes speaks about the importance of participation and his philosophy of social music during his recent show at the Vilar Center.

Colorado Prudential Gore Range Properties and the Town of Avon teamed up to present the largest Easter Egg Hunt in the Vail Valley.

In Febuary of 2008, twenty children from second to sixth grade bravely stood before a microphone to determine who would represent Eagle County in the statewide spelling bee.

If the prospect of a cookie festival doesn't entice you to head to Beaver Creek with your kids this weekend, just know that cookies are just the beginning of the lineup of treats.

Cookie Magazine is teaming up with the resort for the inaugural Kids Cookie Fest, March 13-15.

The fortress of fun takes shape in the form of Cookie Corner, essentially any child's dream.

If cookies alone don't do it for the kids (they should visit a doctor immediately), then making their own snow globes and crazy hats, decorating ski helmets and getting gooey  at the ice cream social are bound to kindle some giggles.

The off-slopes options geared toward kids are sizzling throughout the festival. The Park Hyatt is extending its S'mores Happy Hour from 3 to 5 p.m. each day, so if you haven't tried the free, gourmet marshmallow sandwiches, then this is a prime opportunity. Thursday also features a free screening of "Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium" and a rail jam open to all intermediate skiers and snowboarders. Friday unfolds with some serious creative dough, including a family scavenger hunt beginning in Cookie Corner, followed by the ice cream social and free tubing for children 12 and younger.

The snow globe and mad hat making will be in progress throughout the festival in Cookie Corner, and we're guessing there's bound to be some cookies nearby - definitely at 3 p.m., when Beaver Creek's magical daily Cookie Time materializes. On Saturday, kids can strut their new accessories at the Mad Hatter ice skating party, free to all skaters sporting a crazy hat.
The Cookie Fest coincides with kid-friendly paid performances at the Vilar Performing Arts Center, including Grammy Award-winning "musician for the little people," Dan Zanes on Friday and the famed Chicago Children's Choir on Saturday.

For more information on the Cookie Kids Fest, call 970-845-9090.

• Cookie Kids Fest Schedule:

Thursday, March 13
3 p.m.: "Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium." Vilar Performing Arts Center. Free.
4-5 p.m.: Rail Jam Series at base of the mountain. Free to intermediate skiers and riders.
7 p.m.: Thursday Night lights - glow stick ski-down for intermediate skiers/riders with music and fireworks
 
Friday, March 14
9 a.m.-3 p.m.: Family Scavenger Hunt at Cookie Corner. Free.
3-4:30 p.m.: Ice Cream Social at Gerald R. Ford Hall for kids ages 15 and younger; free with coupon from Cookie Corner.
4:30 p.m.: Kids tubing at base of mountain; free for kids 12 and younger.
6:30 p.m.: Dan Zanes and Friends at the Vilar; $35 for adults; $25 for children.

Saturday, March 15
3-5 p.m.: Mad Hater Skating Party at ice rink in Beaver Creek Village; free ice skating for anyone wearing a crazy hat
6:30 p.m.: Chicago Children's Choir at Vilar Performing Arts Center; $48 for adults; $36 for children.

With its plush bathrobes, world-class spa, four-star chefs and castle-like ambiance, The Park Hyatt at Beaver Creek doesn’t exactly remind a person of camping.

But then there’s the cozy fire pit. And the S’mores Happy Hour.

S’mores Happy Hour rivals any other brand of happy hour in Beaver Creek, Vail or anywhere nearby.

Why? Well, this happy hour comes with FREE s’mores from 4 to 5 p.m. every day. And these aren’t standard s’mores, either. Sure, you've got all the key components: chocolate squares, marshmallows and graham crackers, but the chocolate comes in both milk and dark and Park Hyatt chefs won’t just leave it at that. They also make flavored homemade marshmallow cubes with M&Ms, toffee, vanilla, and for the s’mores fans with slightly more sophisticated palates, Grand Marnier and crème de menthe.

Indeed, nothing caps a ski day like hot roasted s’mores around the fire pit. On any given day, a crowd of all ages can be found packed around the pit, most still wearing ski gear, indulging in S’mores Happy Hour and listening to the live music of local musicians. Even the roasting prongs are upscale, with plenty of room for one of every marshmallow variety.

The Park Hyatt packages up its s’mores kits and sells them for $10 to anyone with a late-night hankering or don’t make it to the free roasting hour.

One of the primary roles of the Vail Symposium is to educate. Whether it's world affairs, geology, politics, history or science, the Symposium's Learningpalooza in February 2008 covered all the hot spots. Oh yes ... for those of you trying to solve the puzzle, the answer is 'C.'

Drawing cartoons for a living appears to come with the added talent of amazing improvisation skills. For evidence, try watching New Yorker cartoonists sketch out one masterpiece after another amidst the shouts and requests of young onlookers.

KidTooning is in full swing at Beaver Creek’s Humor on the Slopes, and cartoonists are getting lots of practice drawing robots, caterpillars and magical creatures.

The drawings are collaborative efforts between the cartoonist and whichever child happens to be pulling at his or her pant leg wanting to give it a go.

“I usually let the kids put down some squiggles and I go from there,” said New Yorker cartoonist Paul Noth, who, after his first hour and a half of KidTooning, was unable to recall if he’d done 15 drawings or 90.

“There have been a lot of robots,” he said. “Once I get started, I just let the kids yell out ideas of what they want.”

Carolita Johnson, like any artist, has a history behind her cartooning, one that evolves from being called “Ape Face” as a teenager, then going on to be a model, always drawing as her ultimate passion.

“When you do art for a living, it’s because it’s all you know how to do,” she said. Johnson’s favorite cartoon subject matter outside of her punchy New Yorker offerings include drawings of a dog and a monkey.

“The dog is an old dog I had and the monkey is me,” she said. “It kind of goes back to Ape Face …”

She is working on a children’s book starring the two characters.

Roth said he turns out about 10 rough drafts per week for the New Yorker and both he and Johnson approach their projects in the same way. Rather than beginning their drawings by sketching out a character’s eyes or hair, they put down a rough outline of the entire composition.

“You want to get the composition right immediately,” Johnson said. “You want to make sure it’s going to fit the joke.”

 

With fantastic snow and new sights all over Vail and Beaver Creek, we caught a few frames and plenty of smiles in February 2008.