Logan's Candies - Ontario

I have heard folks raving about this candy cane making demo for ages, so I was determined to go this year.  We went with a homeschool field trip, but families can join a demo in November & December.  The calendar is at http://www.loganscandies.com/candydemos.php .

If you want to make an evening of it (and try to avoid the traffic) consider going to Vince's Spaghetti for dinner.  It is reasonably priced and can seat large parties with no problem. (Photo by Kohl Tabori)

The demo begins outside the store with the candy maker pouring the hot liquid candy onto marble.

Both colors of the candy cane start out the same, then color is added to the red part.

To make the white part, the candy is pulled over and over again.  It's amazing how it turns white when air is mixed in. (Photo by Kohl Tabori)

After the colors are arranged on the candy, the puller cuts off a small length to be bent into shape.

Freshly made candy canes!

Holiday Events 2013!

Local holiday events that you don't want to miss!
Cut a virtual snowflake!

Until December 6: Holiday Mail for Heroes - send a card to a soldier
Until December 23:  Marionette show - free - 7pm - 3314 Country Club Drive, Lakewood
Until December 24: Have Santa send a personal greeting to your child! - free
Until December 24: Macy's will donate $1 to Make-A-Wish for every stamped letter to Santa that is dropped off at special letterboxes in their stores
Until December 25:  ABC Family's 25 Days of Christmas movies
Until January 4: Festival of Lights, Mission Inn, Riverside - ice skating
Until January 5: CHILL at the Queen Mary - $40/adults, $20/kids
Until February 15: Monarch butterflies in Goleta, CA 

December 5: Sound of Music Live - NBC
December 6: Tree Lighting at Nino's - First Fridays Bixby Knolls - 6pm
December 6: Shark Lagoon Nights - Aquarium of the Pacific - free
December 6: Free admission to the Grammy Museum
December 7: Winter Wonderland - St. Isadore, Los Alamitos - free - 4pm to 8pm
December 7: Belmont Shore Christmas Parade - Long Beach
December 7: Snow Day at Drake Park - please donate a canned food to Food Finders - 1pm-5pm
December 7: Yule Ball & Toy Drive - St. Luke's, LB - admission $10 toy/family
December 7: Rancho Los Cerritos - Creation Station: Christmas crafts 1pm-4pm  - free
December 7-8: Victorian Christmas - Banning Museum - Wilmington - free
December 8: Winterfest & Christmas Musicals - First Baptist Church, 5336 E. Arbor, LB - free
December 12: Family Art Workshops - LB Museum of Art - free
December 12: Holiday Sing - Cypress - 6pm - free, $3 dinner
December 13: Snow Night! Good Neighbor Park, 2800 Studebaker, LB 5pm-9pm - free
December 13: Shark Lagoon Nights - Aquarium of the Pacific - free
December 13-15: Prince of Peace Christmas pagaent - Long Beach - 7:30pm-9pm free
December 14: Snow Day! Good Neighbor Park, 2800 Studebaker, LB 10am-8pm - free
December 14: Daisy Lane Holiday Parade - 5pm - free
December 14-15: Goodyear Blimp Open House - Carson - suggested donation: toy for Toys For Tots
December 14-15: Dickens Holiday Celebration - Int'l Printing Museum, Carson $18/person, includes lunch
December 14: Free picture with Santa - Shops at Rossmoor, Seal Beach - 2pm to 4pm
December 14: Snow Day! (weather permitting) Balearic Community Center- 1975 Balearic Drive, Costa Mesa 9am-12p – FREE for all!
December 17: Free day at South Coast Botanical Garden, RPV
December 18: Mary Poppins - ABC Family channel 8pm
December 18: Free Shipping Day
December 21: Naples Boat Parade & Caroling - 6pm - free
December 21: Astronomer's Club - Columbia Space Center, Downey - $2, free for members
December 24: LA County Holiday Celebration - downtown LA - free
December 24: Track Santa - NORAD
December 27: Shark Lagoon Nights - Aquarium of the Pacific - free

Where to see lights/decorations:

• Naples
• Sleepy Hollow, Torrance
• Bass Pro Shops, Rancho Cucamonga

Exploring Your Universe - UCLA

Sunday, November 17, Noon-5pm
Rain or Shine! (In case of rain, all outdoor activities will be moved indoors)
Free & Family Friendly!

http://www.astro.ucla.edu/~outreach/eyu2013.html

This is the most exciting day of science all year in Southern California.  They have many activities and demonstrations open to the general public, including outside groups like STAR Eco Station.  Activities for all ages include workshops, faculty and graduate student talks, planetarium shows, solar telescope viewing, comet making, weather tours, dinosaur fossils, physics demos, and more!

This event includes participation from Astronomy Live!, the Departments of Physics and Astronomy, Earth and Space Sciences, and Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, the Center for Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology, and IEEE.  The program was developed by graduate students, faculty, and staff in each of these departments.

DAYTIME ACTIVITIES

Astronomy (12:00 - 5:00 pm) (Court of Sciences unless otherwise noted):
- How the Sun works and solar telescope viewing
- Stellar Evolution
- Bottle Rockets
- Comet Making Demo
- Pocket Solar System and Asteroids
- Constellation Detectives
- Discovery methods for finding new worlds beyond our solar system
- Planetarium Shows (Mathematical Sciences 8th floor): Every half hour starting 12:30 pm! Pick up tickets to planetarium at the Information Booth.

Physics (12:00 - 5:00 pm) (Physics and Astronomy Building - PAB):
- Physics Demonstrations
- Lasers and Optics
- Waves and Vibrations
- Rotational Motion
- Electricity and Magnetism

Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (12:00-5:00) (Court of Sciences):
- Exploding Marshmallows--Expand marshmallows using a vacuum pump!
- Can Crushing--See how pressure can crush soda cans!
- Tornado-in-a-bottle--See and create your own vortexes!
- Cloud-in-a-bottle--See clouds being made right before your eyes!
- Portable Weather Station--Talk with experts about conditions and get an updated forecast for the day!

Chemistry (12:00-5:00 pm) (Court of Sciences):
- Find out how to make a bubble bomb for baths
- Find out what floats on top of what... and what floats on top of that!
- Watch food get frozen with liquid nitrogen
- Eat liquid nitrogen ice cream