Last weekend, I visited the Philly Flower Show at the city’s convention center with family. It was a welcome respite from the recent storms that brought snow and power losses to our area. 250,000 visitors attended this year’s show, an impressive number given the recent storms. The theme was Wonders of Water, produced by the PA Horticultural Society.

The show highlighted plants that usually are found in wetter, warmer climates, with a focus on water conservation. Entering the rainforest garden was a sight to behold—water lilies, palm trees and purple and red blossoms from New Guinea wowed the large crowd.    

Adjacent to the rainforest exhibit, Windows on the Watershed offered a “day in the life” of the Delaware River Watershed, a chance to learn how plants contribute to water quality. Walking through this exhibit, we saw how organisms cleanse and sustain the watershed; water is filtered by plants, animals and the ground.

Windows on the Watershed, essentially the same process as the rainforest, revealed similar ecological lessons.

The Philadelphia Cactus and Succulent Society exhibit explained to visitors that cacti and succulents survive much better without being watered. In this exhibit, we learned that cacti and succulents are self-sufficient in the proper soil or container.

This year’s show was a good chance to experience what it might be like to have water in your own yard. The Stoney Bank exhibit featured a pond, arbor wall and seating. Visitors looked through a water wall out at this show.

Some exhibits had impressive water displays, including a serenity space and the Laurel-Brook Gardens.    

Next year’s theme is Flower Power, focusing on the role flowers play in bringing people together in healing and peace. If you live in the Philly area, this annual show is a must-see for inspiration and creative flower ideas.          

Last weekend, we attended A Child Grows’ First Annual Philadelphia Baby & Family Expo in Center City. I was excited about this as I was a media sponsor; A Child Grows has run a successful Brooklyn Expo since 2012.

I ran a Family Pass giveaway on this blog, and my friend won the pass. She brought her daughter to the expo, and met me so our kids could play together.

Primp & Play and Music Monkey Jungle were co-sponsors of The Playroom. Primp & Play offered kid manicures and hands-on crafts. My girls were happy to make their own lip balm there. Music Monkey Jungle sang and danced for the crowd of children. Who knew they could play Taylor Swift upon request?

A Child Grows lined up a stellar list of speakers. I sat in on Wills, Trusts & Guardians 101 with Steven M. Zelinger, Esq. He asked: Did you know there are five Crucial Legal Documents every parent needs? No parent wants to think about death but you have to as a responsible person. Maybe you purchased life insurance, but with that, you thought you were done. Zelinger told the audience there’s more to protecting your family.

I also listened to Your Top Three Parenting Stressors Solved with Child & Family Coaching with Brandi Davis, ACC, a certified Parenting Coach, Parent Educator, and Author of O.K. I’m A Parent Now What? Brandi was just named Best of Philly’s Best Modern-Day Parenting Guru.

Davis told the crowd that being a parent comes with many stressors; some can be solved, and some just come with the territory. Being a parent is tough but there is no need to feel exhausted, spent and drained every day. Davis delved into how to lighten your load and squish those top three stressors:

My Discipline Isn’t Working; Now All I Do Is YELL!
I’m Getting Attitude, Fighting and Negotiations At Every Turn
I Can’t Get A Second For Myself

Jill Spivack, co-author of The Sleepeasy Solution, founder of Sleepy Planet Parenting and Star of hit Bravo show, There Goes the Motherhood, gave the keynote address.

Jill Spivack, LCSW is a licensed family therapist and pediatric sleep consultant who earned her master’s degree at the University of Southern California and completed a post-graduate fellowship as a psychotherapist at Cedars Sinai Medical Center.

I am past the baby and toddler sleep challenges, so I did not stay too long at this panel. I did not attend the afternoon panels, which were geared toward mothers of babies. Instead, I walked the expo floor and spoke to the media sponsors. We got a chance to get our hair curled by Concihairge and then take photos in front of a gorgeous floral design by Nicol Floral Designs.

From the expo, I gleaned two interview ideas and subjects I will cover for an education site. I am always looking for new interview ideas, and this was the perfect place to find them.

A Child Grows offered a wealth of insight and resources for parents, especially for mothers with babies or toddlers. I’ll be back next year for sure, and will bring the kids along so they can have fun too.

Last weekend, we attended Opening Day to Robot Revolution at the Franklin Institute, a new exhibit supported by Google.org and The Boeing Company. Robots are changing how we live, work and play. They are poised to become a visible and vital part of our daily lives.

A neighbor and her son accompanied us, and we set off for a learning experience.

I was intrigued to witness some innovative robots that are meeting human needs. From self-driving cars to surgical assistance, from scientific research to search and rescue missions—robots are here to help improve our lives. Robot Revolution offers 40 cutting-edge robots curated from innovative global robotics companies and universities, more than half of which can be interacted with or operated. #partner

Social robots show emotions. Researchers have analyzed how humans express their emotions and use these cues to program robots that simulate human emotions.

We met a robot that held our gaze. ROBOTIS-OP first has to recognize that you have a face. It sees you through its onboard camera; its software analyzes visual data to determine if the pattern formed by your eyes and mouth is a face. When visual criteria are met, the robot meets and follows your gaze. (See photo below.) Pretty cool, right?

Police and military use the Recon Scout Throwbot XT to explore dangerous environments before sending in their teams. This rugged, remotely-operated micro-robot travels through cluttered indoor environments and over dirt, sand and rocks. Once deployed, the robot sends video of its surroundings back to its human operators so they can identify threats.

Here are some highlights of the exhibit:

• Play Tic Tac Toe
My kids enjoyed playing tic tac toe against Baxter, an industrial robot that can battle up to two guests at a game of tic-tac-toe as he showcases his agility and task versatility.

• Make a Face!
We could smile, frown, or be silly with EMYS, a robot from Poland that uses a facial action coding system to mimic facial expressions and human emotions with its head and eyes.

• Watch A Soccer Bot Match
A must see–soccer ‘bots go head to head without any human input in a competition. See what team of robots wins in this fun game of autonomy.

The kids had the most fun when they got the chance to build their own code to move a robot forward, backward, left or right. Robots only do what they have been programmed to do. The Planning for Action area offers kids the chance to advance to a higher level once they master their current programming. We found this to be the most engrossing area of the exhibit.

Use promo code MBROBOT* to receive $5.00 off up to 4 adult, daytime tickets to Robot Revolution. To redeem the code, contact us 215-448-1200 or visit fi.edu.

*$5 off Daytime Adult Admission tickets to Robot Revolution. Limit 4 tickets per person. Includes General Admission to The Franklin Institute. Cannot be combined with any other offer or discount. Upgrades available on-site for IMAX and 3D Theater. Redeemable online, over the phone or at the Ticketing Desk. Processing fees apply when ordering tickets in advance. Excludes holidays. Valid through 12/31/16.

Robot Revolution runs through April 2, 2017. Plan your visit today! https://www.fi.edu/exhibit/robot-revolution

A few weeks ago, my kids were off from school so I took them to check out The Science Behind Pixar at the Franklin Institute. It was the perfect activity to do on a non-school day. We were curious to learn how the Pixar wizards use science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) to create their films.

The exhibition consists of eight sections to give both children and adults a “behind the scenes” look into the production pipeline used at Pixar daily. You get the chance to create your own short animations, light a scene starring Dory and learn how Disney characters are built from wireframes to finished animation.

What I found most fascinating was the opportunity to learn about the jobs filmmakers do every day and how they tackle problems. It was an enlightening demonstration of how creativity and imagination is involved in the STEAM concepts essential to the filmmaking process.

A few sections of the exhibit:

Modeling: Artists create sketches and clay sculptures called maquettes to design each character. A digital modeler creates a virtual 3D model of the character, sometimes digitally scanning the maquette. The created model is a virtual digital wireframe of points and edges that connect them.

Rigging: Riggers create rigs for models. Rigs specify the relationships between body parts so that bending a knee will raise the foot, but not move the hands. We learned that a rig defines a sequence of reactions. For example, when a hand clenches, muscles in the arm flex and the skin draws tight.

My kids enjoyed selecting a rig to define arm motion and using a rig to create expressions.

Sets and cameras: The setting of each scene and the way each image is framed convey the context, story, and emotion. Set designers build virtual environments from the ground up. Camera artists use virtual cameras to shape what is on screen. They select the composition, camera movement, and lens type to support the film.

We explored how cameras frame a scene. We selected a camera (focus distance and field of view) and used the cameras to tell a story. The order of a camera selection affects the feel of a scene.

Lighting: Light enhances the emotional feel of each scene. Pixar’s lighting designers define virtual lights in the computer. The color, position, and intensity of each light needs to be programmed to achieve the desired artistic effect.

We had fun adjusting virtual lights to change the feel of a scene.

My kids enjoyed coming face-to-face with re-creations of Pixar film characters like Buzz Lightyear, Dory, Mike and Sulley, and WALL-E. Before leaving the exhibit, don’t forget to take a selfie with Buzz Lightyear or Wall-E (#ScienceOfPixar).

If you would like to purchase tickets to The Science Behind Pixar, use discount promo code MBPIXAR* to receive $5.00 off up to 4 adult, daytime tickets to The Science Behind Pixar. #partner

Disclaimer “*$5 off Daytime Adult Admission tickets to The Science Behind Pixar. Limit 4 tickets per person. Includes General Admission to The Franklin Institute. Cannot be combined with any other offer or discount. Upgrades available on-site for IMAX and 3D Theater. Redeemable online or over the phone. Processing fees apply when ordering tickets in advance. Excludes holidays. Valid through 8/28/16”

A few weeks ago, it was my daughter’s eighth birthday party. Family was here that weekend from out of town—it was the perfect time for us to all check out the new exhibit Lost Egypt at the Franklin Institute.

I was excited to have the opportunity to review this exhibit as my second grader loves science as a subject and both of my kids had been to the Franklin on summer camp trips and remembered the visits.

We walked into the exhibit and the kids immediately ran over to the replica of a life-size camel (see photo below) and climbed into the camel’s saddle for a photo.

From there we moved on to an interactive pottery puzzle, where my Kindergartner enjoyed piecing together the pottery, similar to how archaeologists reconstruct an object from broken pieces.

We learned that Egyptians worshipped a large number of gods and goddesses, and that each one was connected to an element of nature or human activity. Most of what we know about Egyptians comes from their tombs and burials. They believed that life continued after death, so they placed food, drink, clothing and other items in their tombs, where they were preserved for thousands of years. Fascinating!

My youngest was interested in learning about the different ceramic types—pot stand, bowl, etc. On a computer, my second grader explored items to pack for an archaeological dig. Fun!

Entering the dig area was pretty cool. Modeled after an archaeological field site in Egypt, this area explores the tools, techniques and technologies used at the Lost City of the Pyramid Builders site on the Giza Plateau. Stories from the archaeologists focus on life in the field, discoveries, and artifacts. Visitors are encouraged to find a site, identify material remains, and engage in scientific inquiry about the lives of the Pyramid Builders.

We learned that over 100 pyramids were built in Egypt; the biggest ones could take more than 20 years to complete. We enjoyed reviewing the steps to build a pyramid, with diagrams.

Most fascinating perhaps was viewing “Annie” the anonymous mummy and learning the history. A teenage girl’s body was found floating in the Nile; more than 2,000 years later, a researcher examined the mummy, discovering clues about her life and death. “Annie” was presented in an atmosphere of respect, and the kids were curious about her story from a scientific perspective.

The Lost Egypt runs through August 28th, so plan your visit today! https://www.fi.edu/lost-egypt