Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Whooping Cough Vaccine Clinic

You may have watched WGAL last night and caught the segment on the rise of Whooping cough in York, if not you can watch it here : http://www.wgal.com/video/24737151/. In response to the outbreak the York City Bureau of Health and the York County Health Department will be distributing a vaccine for the disease, known at pertussis, at it's FREE clinics this Wednesday.


Most children, under 10, are fully vaccinated against pertussis, look on your shot record for the Tdap booster. The gap in immunity begins at age 10 and most adults are at risk, especially women in their "childbearing years" and people who are in contact with pregnant women and children too young to be vaccinated.

Please take the time to call your doctor or you children's doctor to see if you need to schedule a vaccination.


The clinics Wednesday run as follows:
  • The York City Bureau of Health at 435 W. Philadelphia St. (846-6804) from 9am-noon and 1pm-3pm.
  • The York County Department of Health at 1750 N. George St (771-4505) from 9am-noon.


Sunday, August 22, 2010

York Halloween Parade~YWCA Wants You!

The 61st Annual York Halloween Parade is looking for participants and volunteers. Please visit the YWCA's website for more information at http://www.ywcayork.org/ or visit them at 320 E. Market St., you can pick up an application at the Y or download one on their website. We can't wait!

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Lake Tobias

If you have never been to Lake Tobias Wildlife Park then now is the perfect time to make plans to take a little trip. My mother took my me, my 3 year old daughter, my sister and my 20 month old nephew yesterday and we had an AWESOME time, another one of those "Why haven't I done this before" moments.

Lake Tobias is located in Halifax, about an hour and ten minute drive from York, North of Harrisburg. We arrived at 10am right when they opened the gates for parking. When you pull in, before parking, you will be charged admission which is $4 for everyone ages 3 and up which includes all zoo exibits and petting zoo areas. Bring cash, they might take credit cards, but there was one lady taking money and the process is slow enough already. Once we parked we headed straight down to get passes for the safari, the safari is $5 for everyone 3 and up, and it was totally worth it.

The safari is about 40-45 minutes long and you get up close and personal with over 300 animals including a variety of deer, emu, elk, buffalo, water buffalo, longhorns, and zebra. They even had two zedonks, that would be a mix of donkey and zebra, which were not only unique but hilarious to say! You can buy crackers to feed the animals along the way and the kids really get into it, my girly-girl daughter squealed with delight as a deer nibbled out of her hand.

After the safari we walked around the zoo area and saw monkeys, bears, lions, baboons, prairie dogs and lemurs. There were staff members walking around answering questions and one staff member was holding a baby hedgehog that the kids were allowed to pet. There was also a petting zoo where a goat tried to eat my pants (wear jeans), and a reptile house that was an additional dollar, but we decided it most likely wouldn't fly with our kids so we skipped it.

There was also a concession stand next to the safari bus station, soda and water vending machines around the zoo area and a large covered picnic area available, so you can pack your own lunch and save a little money. Next to the picnic area is a large playground, so the kids can take a little break after lunch and play before heading back to see the animals or taking a nice nap on the way back to York!

In total, for $9 a person, it was a GREAT find! Enjoy, we sure did! http://www.laketobias.com/homepage/

Fall Clubs and Sports

It's sign-up season in York, so I thought I would pass along some sports and clubs sign-ups that might interest you and/or your children!

  1. York Youth Soccer League- For kids aged 4 and up. http://yysl.org/
  2. The York County SPCA Youth Group, for teens 13-17. The group meets from 10:30a-12:30pm the first Saturday of each month at the SPCA building in Manchester Township. Call 764-6109 or more information.
  3. The York Youth and Young at Heart Chess Club meets from 1pm-5:30pm Saturdays at CityView Community Church in Manchester Township. The group was created to help school aged children learn to play chess and prepare them for tournament play. If you are interested call Christopher Blaise Sr. at 424-9528
  4. The York Art Association is preparing for it's fall classes and youth and adult classes are available. If you are interested you can call their offices at 755-0028 or visit them online at http://www.yorkartassociation.org
  5. Auditions are coming up for DreamWrights Theater's version of Animal Farm, this one is for the bigger kids aged 13-19. Visit their website for more information: http://www.dreamwrights.org/
  6. 4H York County is gearing up for another great fall season, if you have a child aged 5-18 that might be interested in learning the science and technology that goes into farming and preserving the environment around them then check them out here: http://www.4hyorkpa.org/
  7. For something different, The Colonial York Junior Stamp Club (yes, stamp collecting), meets the 3rd Saturday starting in September though May at 10am at the Agricultural and Industrial Museum on Princess St. in York. For more information contact Paul Daugherty at paul@embarqmailcom or John Wallace at johnwallace@aol.com
  8. If you live in York City, the city has wonderful youth programs listed on their website, including sports, Boys and Girls clubs, and activities. Check them out here: http://www.yorkcity.org/section.php?name=youthprograms
  9. KidShape is a family based weight management program developed to address the epidemic of childhood obesity and help kids that are struggling with weight issues. The 9 week program is geared towards families with a 6-14 year old child, who is overweight, to help teach better nutrition, help with self-esteem and get them moving with increased activity. If you are interested in this program contact Memorial Hospital or your health care provider, I have read a lot of positive feedback on the program from parents who attended this program in Harrisburg!
  10. Finally check out your townships website for fall sports that should be starting soon. Also the YMCA, YWCA and Jewish Community Center have their fall lineups available as well. The JCC also posted two specific classes for the fall in the newspaper.
  • Kids Gym Jam, which is held from 6:15pm-7pm Tuesday's for kids 1-4 years old (great sibling class). It features age appropriate gym equipment and props of all kids to develop large muscle skills.
  • Musical Me, which is held from 5:30pm-6:15pm Thursday's for children 1-4 years old. This class is intended to introduce your child to elements of music, rhythms and sounds.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Dallastown Carnival

Starting today, Tuesday August 17th, the annual Dallastown Carnival is in full swing! The carnival runs from tonight, 6-10pm, through this Saturday. There is FREE live entertainment every night, parking is free and admission is free! There are wristbands available for kids to ride all night long for $16. Tonight and Thursday night are "coupon" night, follow the link below for the $2 off coupon for wristbands!

Enjoy the carnival!!



Monday, August 16, 2010

Back to School Dates!

I know you all are aware of your own child's back to school date but I thought I would post all of the districts in York County just in case! (I like to know when all of my teacher friends and family disappear!)

York County

August 24

South Eastern

August 25

Central York

Dover

Hanover

Northeastern

Spring Grove

August 30

Dallastown

Northern York

West York

August 31

Eastern York

Red Lion

South Western

Southern York

York City

September 1

York Suburban