mily Focus
Family Fun:
Making The Most Of Winter
Music, books and Tu b'Shevat help keep families active and comfy.
Winter's shorter days and colder temperatures make it more challenging to find fun and affordable activities
the whole family can enjoy. These ideas can help tide you over until kite flying season arrives.
Mu sical Notes
• 5 unday, Jan. 25:
"Cc lebrating Miracles" is the
the me of the community-wide
Ne w Zimriyah concert, 2:30-
4: 30 p.m. at Adat Shalom
Sy nagogue, 29901 Middlebelt,
Fa rmington Hills. A variety of
lo cal Jewish youth choirs will
erform with the Kids Klez
B and of Michigan. Concert is
fr ee and open to the public.
C all (248) 851-5100 or visit
www.adatshalom.org .
• Sunday, Feb. 22: Bring
the family to Kids & Strings,
featuring classical music by
the Ambassador Quintet,
composed of members of the
Detroit Symphony Orchestra.
2 p.m. at the Jewish
Community Center in Oak
Park, 15110 W. Ten Mile Road.
Tickets are $5 for JCC mem-
bers; $7 for non-members;
$4 for children; or $18 for the
whole family. Visit www.jccdet.
org or call (248) 967-4030.
• Feb. 22-March 8: Enjoy the
music of Melissa Manchester,
along with a variety of per-
formers featuring Broadway,
klezmer, classical, pop/rock,
jazz, opera and family enter-
tainment at the JCC's Stephen
Gottlieb Jewish Musicfest at
the Jewish Community Center,
15110 W. Ten Mile Road, Oak
Park. For a schedule, visit
www.jccdet.org or call (248)
967-4030, ext. 2020.
Tu B'Shevat - Monday,
Feb. 9
• Celebrate the Jewish "New
Year of the Trees" with a plate
of traditional Israeli fruits:
grapes, figs, pomegranates,
olives and dates. Discuss ways
that each family member can
conserve resources
to help make
the world a little
"greener." Do some
indoor planting:
grow a windowsill
herb garden or
place an avocado
pit in a cup of water
until it sprouts and
then transplant it into a con-
tainer filled with potting soil.
• Sunday, Feb. 8: The Jewish
Cultural Society welcomes
you to a family Tu b'Shevat
celebration featuring music,
storytelling, environmental
workshops, paper making,
seed planting, a plant scaven-
ger hunt, a walking seder and
crafts.10 a.m.- noon at the
Matthaei Botanical Gardens
and Nichols Arboretum,1800
N. Dixboro Road, Ann Arbor.
No charge. Contact Lori at
(734) 975-9872 or Imoizio@
sbcglobal.net .
Off The Beaten Path
• For a taste of something
different, take a tour of the
Jiffy Mix factory in Chelsea,
located at 201 W. North St.
Walk through the plant, see a
slide presentation and enjoy
some Jiffy-style refreshments.
Free admission, reservations
required. Call the tour depart-
ment at (734) 475-1361 or
visit www.jiffymix.com .
• Through Jan. 25: See the
latest car designs from around
the world at the annual North
American International Auto
Show. This classic Detroit
event takes place at Cobo
Center, 1 Washington Blvd.,
from 9 a.m.-10 p.m. (admit-
tance ends at 6 p.m on the
last day). $12, adults; $6,
children ages 7-12;
free for kids 6 and
younger. Call (248)
643-0250 or visit
www.naias.com .
• Jan. 23-25:
Watch dragons,
people and struc-
tures emerge from
100- to 330-pound chunks
of ice right before your eyes
at the 27th annual Plymouth
International Ice Sculpture
Spectacular in Kellogg Park,
736 Penniman Ave., in down-
town Plymouth. Call (734)
459-6969 or visit
www.plymouthice.com .
• Jan. 30-Feb. 15: Meet
the newest muppet, Abby
Cadabby, as she joins Big
Bird, Cookie Monster and the
rest of the gang in the latest
Sesame Street Live adventure,
When Elmo Grows Up, at the
Fox Theater, 2211 Woodward
Ave., Detroit. Tickets are
$12-$22, with $10 seats avail-
able on family discount days:
Friday, Jan. 30; Wednesday,
Feb. 4; and Thursday, Feb.12.
To charge tickets by phone,
call (248) 433-1515; for more
information, call 313-471-6611
or visit www.
olympiaentertainment.com .
• Feb. 13, 14, 15: World-class
ice-carving professionals will
take up their laser-sharp ice
tools and chain saws when
the Village of Rochester Hills
hosts a weekend of ice sculpt-
ing, shopping and dining.
Nearly 25 entertaining and
artistic ice sculptures will be
on display in the Village, locat-
ed at the northeast corner of
Walton and Adams roads. For
more information, call Melissa
Bunker, (313) 886-9074, or
Michelle Shafir, marketing
director, (248) 375-9451, or
visit www.
villageofrochesterhills.com .
Jewish-themed book or CD
mailed to your home every
month for a year. Sponsored
by the Jewish Federation
of Metropolitan Detroit and
funded by the Applebaum
Family Foundation, this pro-
gram is geared for children
ages 1-6. Call (248) 642-
4260, ext. 534 or register
online at www.pjlibrary.org .
• Our local libraries have
always been great free sourc-
es for books, magazines, CDs
and movies, but I recently
discovered that a library's
store is a great place to find
bargains on books and DVDs.
The Farmington Community
Library on 12 Mile Road in
Farmington Hills had a spe-
cial: $8 for as many items
as you could fit in
a bag. My daughter
and I filled our bag
with several nearly
new movies, hard-
cover books that
looked as though
they'd never been
0 opened and several
paperbacks as well.
Zoo Orleans ...
• Feb. 7 and 8: Join the
parade and enjoy live music
and storytelling during Wild
Winter Mardi Gras weekend
at the Detroit Zoo, from 11
a.m.-3 p.m., 8450 W.10 Mile
Road (just west of Woodward),
Royal Oak. The zoo
is open daily year-
round, and 10 a.m.-4
p.m. from November
through March.
Admission is $11 for
adults, $7 for chil-
dren ages 2-14, $9
for senior citizens
(62 and older), and
free for children
younger than 2. Or, become
a member and receive free
admission and other benefits.
Call (248) 541-5717 or visit
www.detroitzoo.org .
• Check out the book sec-
tion of your favorite discount
store or resale shop. A visit
to a nearby TJ Maxx turned
up a copy of the popular teen
book The Clique for $4, less
than half the price at the
larger bookstores. Plato's
Closet, a resale shop in Novi,
had several current young
adult novels at a fraction of
their original cost.
Books On A Budget
Winter is a great time to plan
a family reading night. Make
some healthy snacks, throw
an extra log on the fire and
enjoy! Here are some ideas
for providing your children
with reading material without
straining the family budget:
• Sign up with the PJ Library
and have a free, brand-new
If you have items or suggestions
for this column, please send them
to Ronelle Grier at ronelleg@aol.
corn, along with your name and
contact information.
J14.
January 22 • 2009
B15