Triangle TRACKS Contest Seeks Belle’s Biggest Fan

How much does your little girl love Belle? Does she have more Belle paraphernalia than a Disney store? If so, she could win two tickets from Triangle TRACKS to see the Carolina Ballet’s premiere performance of “Beauty and the Beast” the night of either May 29, 30 or 31.

If you would like to participate in the contest, just itemize and photograph all of your daughter's Belle stuff (dolls, jewelry boxes, necklaces, clothes, etc.), then email your list and photo documenting the items to epshugg@triangletracks.com by noon on May 29. Triangle TRACKS will announce the winner that day at 2 p.m., in time for the first show.

Triangle TRACKS is a social networking site for local parents that links to almost 2,000 resources for local kids. To visit the site, go to http://www.triangletracks.com.

Check Out Our New Discount TRACKS Page

Everyone is looking for ways to save money these days, so we've added a
Discount TRACKS page. Please email us your discount sites so we can add them to our list.

"The Mysteries of Harris Burdick" Inspires Young Writers

My son's 4th grade teacher recently introduced her class to "The Mysteries of Harris Burdick." Have you heard of these? My son loves to write so he really got into this project. The students were asked to look through the book, select one of Burdick's drawings and descriptions, then write a story to go with the picture. What makes this book so interesting and mysterious, is the manner in which the images came to be published. Here's an excerpt from the book's official website describing how "The Mysteries of Harris Burdick" came to be. Keep in mind, this was written in 1984, so the meeting he is describing actually took place in 1954. The meeting involved Peter Wenders, who once worked for a children's book publisher, and Harris Burdick himself.

Thirty years ago a man called at Peter Wenders's office, introducing himself as Harris Burdick. Mr. Burdick explained that he had written fourteen stories and had drawn many pictures for each one. He'd brought with him just one drawing from each story, to see if Wenders liked his work.

Peter Wenders was fascinated by the drawings. He told Burdick he would like to read the stories that went with them as soon as possible. The artist agreed to bring the stories the next morning. He left the fourteen drawings with Wenders. But he did not return the next day. Or the day after that. Harris Burdick was never heard from again. Over the years, Wenders tried to find out who Burdick was and what had happened to him, but he discovered nothing. To this day Harris Burdick remains a complete mystery.

So, if you are a public, private or home school teacher--or if you're a parent who likes to offer your children inspiring writing assignments--this is the book for you. You can find it at most bookstores and public libraries, so be sure to check it out!

Photo source: www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com

Disney Star Wars Weekends Scheduled for May 22-June 14

The force is with Hollywood Studios in Florida May 22-June 14, as Disney continues its tradition of Star Wars Weekends. Star Wars fans of all ages come out to celebrate the saga with Star Wars celebrity guests. Join hosts Jay Laga'aia and Ashley Eckstein during the first Star Wars weekend, as they welcome Ray Park, Warwick Davis and James Arnold Taylor. Go to http://www.starwars.com/fans/events/news20090515.html for a schedule and map of activities.

Track 2 in Wake County Schools: 21 Very Cool Things to Do During Your Break!

Track 2 is tracked out May 13-June 2. Triangle TRACKS, a local social networking website for Triangle parents that links to over 1,800 resources at www.triangletracks.com, has posted a list of local events planned for kids and families that fall into track 2's break. Check it out:

1. Go to an IMAX movie at Marbles Kids Museum in Raleigh:
"Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" is back in IMAX as a prelude to the release of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" July 17. "Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian" opens May 22 at IMAX and in theaters nationwide, and NASCAR 3D: The IMAX Experience IMAX® film opens May 29. "Up” also debuts May 20 in theaters nationwide, but it won’t be in IMAX.

2. Check out the N.C. Museum of Natural Science Presents "Chocolate" exhibit. Yum!

3. Peruse the Town of Cary Presents the 15th Annual Children's Art Show May 4-29: http://www.triangletracks.com/events/town-of-cary-presents-the-15th
Or check out Durham Public Schools Spring Art Show at Northgate Mall, May 13-27: http://www.triangletracks.com/events/durham-public-schools-spring-1

4. Applause! Cary Youth Theatre Presents "The Beeple" May 14-16.

5. Go to a Durham Bull’s game. Spongebob's friend Patrick returns to Durham Ballpark May 15-17.

6. Broadway Series South Presents "Thomas and Friends Live! On Stage" May 15-17.

7. Kids Rock! at Marbles Kids Museum May 16-17.

8. Shop the Carolina Kids Expo May 16-17 at the N.C. State Fairgrounds.

9. Watch “The Blue Grass Blues” at the Halle Cultural Arts Center in Apex May 16.

10. May 16 is Fishing Fun Day at Harris Lake Park.

11. Head out to Bat Day with Rob Mies at the Museum of Life and Science May 16.

12. Check out Artsplosure 2009's Kidsplosure May 16-17.

13. Kids, Kids Everywhere! at Womble Park May 16.

14. Broadway Series South Presents Bob the Builder Live! May 22-24.

15. Watch the Bread & Puppet Theater present "Cardboard Celebration Circus” May 22-24.

16. Teen Bounce Night at BounceU of Apex is May 22.

17. Carolina Ballet Presents World Premiere of "Beauty and the Beast" May 28-31.

18. Check out “Sesame Street Live: When Elmo Grows Up” May 28.

19. LEGO Master Builder Event at Crabtree Mall: Help Build 8' Tall Yoda! May 29-31.

20. "Buggin' Out" is at Stevens Nature Center/Hemlock Bluffs May 29.

21. Get Into the Driver's Seat IMAX® Film Opening Event is May 30.

Indulge in the N.C. Museum of Natural Science’s Delectable Chocolate Exhibit Beginning This Weekend

I wanted to post a May Triangle TRACKS newsletter article here for you all to see. Check out this exhibit! (I get hungry just reading about this.)

The N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh will open its doors to a very delicious special exhibit May 9 through Sept. 7. “Chocolate” offers a deliciously unforgettable journey through the sumptuous treat’s history.

The story begins in the rainforest with the unique cacao tree, whose seeds provide the foundation for making chocolate, which has served as gifts for the gods and a symbol of wealth and luxury.

It continues with a presentation of how the ancient Mayans in Central America used chocolate nearly 1,500 years ago, and how the Aztec civilization of 16th-century Mexico valued cacao seeds as though it was money. Upperclass European society’s discovery of chocolate helped transform chocolate into a mass-produced world commodity.

Admission is $7 for adults, $5 for seniors, $5 for members of the military, $5 for students, $4 for children age 5-11, and free for children under age 5 and museum members. This national tour was developed by The Field Museum in Chicago. For more information, visit http://naturalsciences.org.

The Birds and Bees Text Message Service for Teens

The Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Campaign of North Carolina has launched the Birds & Bees Text Line enabling teens to text questions about "the birds and bees." An excerpt from the home page:

How It Works: You text us a question to (919) 699-0911. Within 24 hours, we text you back with an answer. It’s that simple. We won’t judge you or preach to you; you get the best advice and information that we can offer free of charge. All questions are welcome and no question is too outrageous. We’re here to help.

What's your take on this? Should teens have access to something like this or should parents provide the answers?

We Have a Winner!

Congratulations to Janel Bunten, who also happens to be the Triangle TRACKS Trend TRACKer, for winning 1st place in our Spring Membership Drive contest! Her invitations resulted in 20 new members joining Triangle TRACKS between April 6 and 27, and now she gets to enjoy a prize package valued at $463. Overall, we had 90 new members join during our membership drive!

We'd also like to congratulate our 2nd place winner, Lisa Christensen, and our 3rd place winner, Heather Vansteenbergen. We greatly appreciate all the work these ladies did to help spread the word about Triangle TRACKS. You can view a list of the prizes they won at this link.

We'll do it all again next fall, so continue sending your invitations out. Any invitations sent out after April 27 will count toward your overall fall total!