No need to tiptoe through these tulips

Ahhhh, Botanica. I had an opportunity to visit yesterday and was pleasantly surprised. No, not surprised at the beautiful tulips EVERYWHERE but at the changes since the last time I visited. They were having an event called the Tulips and Fairies Festival. I wasn't quite sure about the Fairies part but I was not at any time accosted by a Tinkerbellish creature. Upon arrival, I was a little surprised to see so many children but after some exploration I discovered that Botanica now has a wonderful children's area. There were crafts to be made, an education center and an extensive play/exploration area. And judging by the amount of happy screams and the absence of crying, I'd say the kids were loving it. One little girl made me chuckle, I heard her say, "MOM! over here, we haven't smelled this one yet!" We should all take that old adage to heart a little more often, you know the one— Stop and smell the roses, or in this case, tulips.

I didn't take any pictures of the children's area (what was I thinking!) but I did snap a few of the gorgeous tulips. So now you can grab the kids and a friend and you can experience nature at it's best, I suggest a visit to Wichita's little treasure, Botanica.

Hey Man, it's Podstock time again.......

What is Podstock 2010?

It’s a conference. It’s a conversation. It’s family.

It's for educators who want to share technology integration strategies, explore social media tools and strengthen established learning networks. We're going into our second year and growing fast.

But we don’t want Podstock to be just about the latest gadget or the coolest software. We want it to be about creativity, about inspiration, about what’s good for kids. Our formal and informal conversations, both face to face and virtually, will help change how we do school.

I have been working on the materials for the conference. Last year I had such a blast and got so many compliments, I knew to even come close to that success was going to be a challenge. I have been thinking on the concept for this year, well, as soon as last year wrapped up. The theme of Podstock came last year, since it was the anniversary of woodstock, we kind of modeled after that. And with the boom of podcasting and technology, Podstock seemed a natural fit for the name. 


Last year was classic Podstock, 60's themed, alot of Peace signs, hippie motif, and of course the VW Hippie van. Our conference folder was crafted to look like an old time album.....(kids ask your parents - think of a vinyl CD).....ahhh, hint of nostalgia.........but anyway...the cover was printed to look well worn, because seriously, what record album in this day and age doesn't look worn? Pull out that old Janis Joplin or Jimi Hendrix album and check it out yourself. The "album" opened up and on the inside was the listing of the presentations and inside the "sleeve" had the lyrics or presenter bios. The record itself had a listing of web 2.0 resources. All very fun.

This year I decided to go more of an electric guitar, 70's feel. So the folder will be a guitar case, - ala, classic Fender case. It has velcro fasteners for the latches and inside a guitar with the 2.0 resources printed on the back. Inside the "satin" lined case pocket is the "song book" with the presentation description listed.
Although it doesn't quite trip my trigger as much as last year's, I am still very excited about the whole thing.

I am very excited for this year's event, which will be held at the Hotel at Old Town in Wichita, KS. Always a good time, including our vendor showcase reception with lots of cold beverages and snacks and a Second Life Dance Party. We've had many conferences throughout the years and we always have a blast at these things. The presentation line up is going to be great as always. For a full schedule and further information go to the Podstock website. So, don't be a drag man, join us for a groovy time, July 16 & 17, 2010.