Wednesday, July 20, 2016 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Commentary...
Take the kids exploring
By Edie Jones
Guest Columnist
Summer! What a wonder-
ful time for reunions, travel-
ing, exploring, adventures,
and introducing your kids to
new cultures. I’m not talking
about cultures of different
countries. I’m referring to
the many cultures found here
in our own United States.
There’s great value in taking
children from their normal
routine and surroundings and
exploring new scenery and
people.
Whenever possible,
leave the freeway. Get out
of traffic and see the scen-
ery. Doing so enables you to
see the windmills of eastern
Oregon, drink in the lush
pictorial scenes of southern
Minnesota, be amazed by
unusual, expansive land for-
mations of the Badlands of
South Dakota and be in awe
of places like Mt. Rushmore.
Close to home the gorgeous,
green hills of the Palouse
country of Washington and
the Rocky Mountains of
Glacier National Park can be
seen in a journey just a few
days away. There is so much
to share with your kids!
You may be thinking
excursions such as these are
expensive. Not necessarily
so. Packing lunches, dili-
gently sticking to a budget,
allowing side trips to less
expensive small towns and
putting your smart phone
to work can really pay off.
On a recent trip across the
country, I put the name of an
inexpensive motel chain into
my phone, got a local listing,
called and got a $57 reserva-
tion. Then the directions on
my phone helped navigate
us directly there in spite of
being on the other side of the
city not knowing our way
around.
Every little town has his-
tory and museums, places
and reasons to stretch young
legs (and older bottoms that
tire of sitting). Older, his-
toric structures, markers that
tell stories of the past, all
have something to teach and
inspire interest.
And parks! When travel-
ing with kids make finding
neighborhood playgrounds a
priority. Take along balls (all
kinds and sizes), Frisbees,
and lacrosse sticks, and plan
time for play. These are the
moments that make memo-
ries and are great for inter-
generational fun.
Provide an inexpensive
camera for each of your kids
and have them document
your travels. They will think
it a marvelous gift and it will
make everything you do an
adventure.
The impression many par-
ents have of long drives with
kids is often unpleasant. If
you can switch that idea to
recognize the value of time
together for conversation,
singing, creating stories,
word games and experienc-
ing new things, the positive
side becomes apparent. Just
be sure to take breaks often
enough to keep the kids
happy. Pack small surprises
of things to do to keep things
interesting (markers and
paper, small books, games,
snacks, etc.).
Take along some rice
paper and chalk or crayons to
do rubbings of gravestones or
historical markers. I’m sure
you are also thinking mov-
ies, books on tape, CDs, and
iPhones: Give the kids a des-
tination for your map quest
to find and have them plan
the route. Establish limits on
the use these electronic tools,
especially when there are
Bend man accused
of abusing dog
BEND (AP) — A Bend
man has been charged with
animal abuse after witnesses
told police he kicked and
punched his 6-month-old
dog.
The Bulletin reports police
obtained a search warrant
Friday night to seize the
shepherd mix named Diesel
and have him evaluated. The
warrant was served Sunday,
and a veterinarian determined
Diesel had multiple injuries.
The suspect, 20-year-old
Tyler Speas, faces charges of
aggravated animal abuse and
attempted animal abuse.
He tells KTVZ he spanked
the dog for peeing in the car.
He says he loves Diesel and
the charges are “outrageous.”
Sheriff’s office
warns of scammers
There are still active tele-
phone scammers working
the Central Oregon area say-
ing they are calling from the
Deschutes County Sheriff’s
Office or other local law
enforcement agency.
This person will say that
there is a warrant or some
kind of fine related to a
missed court date.
Most recently victims
are instructed to go to Fred
Meyer, Walmart has also
been used in the past, and
purchase some type of load-
able charge card or debit
card, then load that card
with a specified amount of
money.
The suspect will then
instruct the victim to give
them the card number over
the phone. The suspect using
the number alone can with-
draw all the money attached
to that card almost immedi-
ately. The money is gener-
ally taken by someone out-
side of the United States and
it is not recoverable by law
enforcement.
The sheriff ’s office
reminds the public that no
local law enforcement agency
will call you on the telephone
and ask for money or instruct
anyone to load a credit/debit
card for them. If you receive
any phone calls regarding
this issue or have any ques-
tions call the dispatch cen-
ter (541-693-6911) prior
to following any instruc-
tions regarding this type of
activity.
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things to see.
A great trip is to follow
the Lewis and Clark Trail.
Track where they went, won-
der how they got from rivers
to overland, and marvel at
their trip down the Columbia
all the way to our very own
Astoria. This is a wonderful
piece of history that comes
alive for kids when you
connect it with your own
journey.
Outside our area are great
places to explore, how-
ever, don’t forget what’s in
our own backyard. There’s
much to do right here, close
to Sisters. The book 100
Hikes in the Central Oregon
Cascades, by William L.
Sullivan, gives many sugges-
tions of great places to go,
with descriptions as to what
age would enjoy them. Some
spots that instantly come to
mind are Tumalo Falls, Tam
McArthur Rim, and Three
Creek Lake.
Be sure to check out
the Deschutes Land Trust
(www.deschuteslandtrust.
org), which offers walks
for children and families to
experience birds, butterflies,
and water wonders. The
Sierra Club offers hikes, and
don’t forget the Deschutes
Children’s Forest and The
Environmental Center in
Bend.
Take your kids explor-
ing, a couple of days away
or close by on an overnight.
You’ll not regret it, and the
benefits for your young ones
will be enormous.
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