Life with Dylan

Author: Michelle

  • Spooktacular Fun at Scarium of the Pacific – Giveaway

    For those of you who live in Southern California, you know how wonderful the Aquarium of the Pacific is – Filled with tropical fish, sharks, otters, penguins, and my personal favorite jellyfish. As members of the Aquarium we visit often and always learn something new with the many hands-on discovery labs and interactive exhibits.

    This Halloween the Aquarium is transformed into Scarium of the Pacific for two days. During this special event your family can explore the creepy creatures of the deep along with magic shows, face painting, and of course a costume contest for the kiddos.

    There will be spooky storytelling and underwater pumpkin carving – this I have to see! Throughout the aquarium there will be Halloween activities and treats for the little ones. You can print out this coupon and receive FREE admission if your child is in costume during Scarium of the Pacific.

    Photo courtesy of Aquarium of the Pacific

    Aside from or regular visits to Aquarium of the Pacific, the special events are a must for my family. We have attended lectures, special member only late nights, whale watching trips, and had the opportunity to preview new exhibits. So when I was asked to give away 8 tickets to this special Halloween event I couldn’t resist the chance to share my families love of the ocean with others. There will be three winners for this giveaway.

    I am giving away one family 4-pack and two sets of 2 tickets each to attend Scarium of the Pacific on Saturday,October 20 or Sunday, October 21, 2012 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Enter to win using the Rafflecopter entry form below. Winners will be selected on Tuesday, October 16 at 10:00 p.m. PST

    a Rafflecopter giveaway
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    Scarium of the Pacific is sure to be a day filled with more fun than fright for the whole family.

    Scarium of the Pacific is included with paid admission – $25.95 adults (12+), $22.95 seniors (62+), $14.95 children (3-11), and free for children under age 3 and Aquarium members.
    For more information about this special event call (562) 590-3100

    Winners will be selected using Rafflecopter. Due to the time sensitive nature of this giveaway, I reserve the right to draw another winner if I am unable to get a mailing address in a timely manner. Giveaway is only open to residents of the contiguous US. Please make sure I can contact you to notify you if you have won (leaving a valid email address in your comment is a great way). Winners will first be announced on Life with Dylan’s Facebook page, so if you’re not a fan of us on Facebook, you may not know if you win.



  • Stop the presses! Rain fell in Southern California

    After what seems like forever, Southern California finally had its first big rainfall of the season.

    I can only think of one thing that gets us Southern Californians talking more than a storm and that is earthquakes.

    You see, we don’t have a very visible change of seasons. We pretty much have blue skies and sunshine year round.

    I’m not complaining about the weather, but you can understand why we get so excited when the rain comes.

    I was in awe of the clouds today and the past few days leading up to the rain. In fact, if you follow me on Instagram you might think that I am a tad bit obsessed with clouds.

    Storm clouds are coming.

    It rained – stormy sunrise
    That’s one big rain cloud!

    We didn’t get tons of rain – but enough to wet the roads, clean the car, and get people talking. Oh, and there was thunder and lightening too! I love the sound of the rain – it totally relaxes me. I’m looking forward to more rain and the bright green hills that the rain leaves behind.

    Beautiful skies over the ocean. The worst was yet to come. 

    Do you like the rain?

  • Seasons Change

    I believe that Fall has finally arrived in Southern California. 
    When I was younger, Summer was my favorite season of the year. Spending days at the beach playing in the sand was the best. Now that I am older, Fall has become my favorite time of the year. Cool breezes and colorful leaves are something I will never get tired of. Not to mention my Pumpkin Spice Lattes. 
    What is your favorite season?

  • Endangered Species Monday – 5 ways you can help save them

    There was a time not to long ago when I asked myself “What can I do to help? How can one person help to save the endangered species?”

    The answer wasn’t difficult to find once I stopped looking at it as something that was impossible and started looking at it as something that could be accomplished.

    So rather than feature another endangered species this week, I decided to share some ways that you can help save endangered species. Little things you can do that will make a difference – things that will make an impact bigger than you ever imagined.

    1. Protect habitats. You can do this by following the rule of Leave No Trace when you go places. When you go for a walk, go to the beach, visit parks and nature preserves, heck any time you leave your home you should leave nothing but footprints. 
    2. Make room for urban wildlife. You can do this by building or buying a birdhouse for your yard or putting out a bird bath for the neighborhood birds. Plant a tree that will become shelter for an animal. 
    3. See the animals first hand. Visit zoos, parks, wildlife refuges, aquariums – anywhere you can see these animals and learn more about them. Learning about the animals and seeing what an important role each one plays is the first step to protecting them. 
    4. Get involved. Whether you join an organization and donate money or simply sign up to receive monthly newsletters and stay informed, getting involved with larger non-profit organizations will help and allow you to choose your level of involvement. 
    5. Talk about it. Yes, talk. Talk to your friends, family, coworkers – anyone who will listen to you. Tell them about the threatened or endangered species. Not just the sad stuff like the amount of rhinos and elephants being poached, but the good stuff too, like the success story of the California Condor. 
    What do you do to help protect and save endangered species?

  • Sunset Sunday – The unexpected beauty

    The great thing about sunsets is that you can see them wherever you are. Sometimes they are off in the distance and sometimes they are right in front of you. Then there are those times when you aren’t even looking for the sunset. You walk outside – you look up – and this is what you see.

    Have a fantastic week and don’t forget to take time to watch the sunsets.

  • Either I’m growing up or I’m growing old

    Lately I have found myself being a little more introverted than usual. I have been enjoying quiet evenings reading blogs or curled up on the couch with a book.

    I would rather spend time learning something new than going to happy hour. Makeup, fashion, and other materialistic things just are not as important as they once were.

    I began thinking … is something wrong with me?

    Of course not, I’m just taking a new path. Crossing a new bridge that I haven’t been on before.

    Then I remembered the story of Peter Pan. The boy who wouldn’t grow up even though he continued to age. It dawned on me – have I grown up?

    I’ve been slowly changing over the past year or two. Slowing down a bit. Turning my focus in life to other things. Acting more like a mom, acting my age. Yes, we all grow old or older, but do we all grow up?

    I came to the conclusion that I have grown up. No more late nights, no more spending money on frivolous things that I don’t need, and no more tolerating things that I don’t like. If I don’t like something, I don’t have to be a part of it. I think more rationally now – I think about the future – about the things I want to do and places I want to go. My life is taking a new path and if this means spending more time at home or more time with my son than so be it.

    I’m still not to sure about the growing old part, but I sure do like how it feels to grow up.

  • You Looking at Me?

    Have you ever wondered what the animals might be thinking when you are taking their picture?

  • New Aniballs App teaches kids about physics and endangered animals

    Imagine if you could make learning about physics fun for your children. Now add some colorful puzzles, animals, and a game that can be played anywhere you are. Sounds almost too go to be true right? Well, let me introduce you to a new app called Aniballs.

    I first heard about Aniballs on twitter and then found their Facebook page. After a few clicks I had downloaded the game for a mere 99 cents and was in a heated competition with my son to rescue the endangered Aniballs.

    What exactly is an Aniball? Well, an Aniball is an animal with the physics of ball.
    What will happen when the ball drops?

    Traveling through the lush Rain Forest, the open Savannah, and the frozen Arctic you have one mission – to rescue the Aniballs and relocate them to a protected reserve. However, it is not as simple as it sounds. The puzzles require you to think. Aniballs is not a game of speed, it is a game of skill. With over 60 puzzles that include rotating platforms and various obstacles to overcome, you must choose the best Aniball for the puzzle. Will the game of physics require your Aniball to be fast, heavy, or have a little bounce? Choose carefully or your Aniball will die.

    Besides learning about physics and having fun, your children will also learn some fun “Feral Facts” about endangered species.  Aniballs has over 200 “Feral Facts” about real endangered species that you can read between levels. This game teaches you new things and you don’t even realize it because you are having so much fun!

    Aside from the physics and the “Feral Facts”, what drew me to Aniballs was that the app was created by a family with many of the decisions (including the design and artwork) made by the children. You can read about how Aniballs came to be and meet the creators here.

    Aniballs is available for iOS and Android devices in the Apple App Store, Amazon App Store, and Google Play marketplace. Aniballs also announced this week that they are awaiting publication on the Barnes & Noble Nook.

    Warning: Aniballs is a highly addictive game. According to Todd Cowden, the game was designed to encourage self-motivation and minimize failure. Progressing through the levels is not difficult, but mastering them to get a perfect score takes both skill and patience.

    I have listened to my son talk aloud while he plays and I am thrilled with what I am hearing. No violent words, just good old-fashioned thinking. I hear things like if I use the heavy one then the platform will spin faster, but I need the bouncy one to get up to the other platform. Genius. My son is learning and he doesn’t think twice about it because he is playing a game – not to mention the game has him rescuing endangered animals.

    You can follow Aniballs on twitter and like their page on Facebook to find out about what is coming next. All updates are free once you download the app. I personally am looking forward to the new environment that is scheduled to be released by the end of the year … the Wetlands.
    Now, if only they would make an Outback environment, that would be awesome.

    Download Aniballs for just 99 cents and let me know what you think in the comments below.

  • Endangered Species Monday – Pangolin

    I will go out a limb here and guess that most of you reading this have never heard of a pangolin, let alone seen a pangolin. They are not the most common animal, but that doesn’t mean that their endangered status is any less important. As I have said before, I believe education and awareness are the cornerstones of conservation – so let me tell you about a little friend named Baba that I recently met at the San Diego Zoo.

    Baba is tree pangolin from Central Africa. Pangolins are mammals with strong muscles in their limbs and a prehensile tail that live along the edges of the rain forest.  There are eight species – four in Africa and four in Asia. Pangolins have sharp claws to help them dig, which you can see in this photo as Baba so gently digs into the keepers arm. They have a very good sense of smell to help them find ants, termites, and beetle larvae – the pangolins main diet.

    Since they do not eat anything that requires teeth, pangolins have no teeth. Instead, they have a long tongue that can be up to 10″ long – that’s one big tongue capable of lapping up lots of ants and termites. I was told that the zoo makes a sort of soup for Baba with the necessary nutrients needed to keep him healthy.

    Pangolins are covered in hard scales that remind me of a pine cone. These scales are used for protection. When the pangolin feels threatened, they will roll up into a ball (similar to an armadillo) and the scales act as armor.

    Sounds great right? Well, the drawback is these scales are made of keratin and like the rhino’s horn, the pangolin is hunted by poachers for this and other things. The pangolin meat is considered a delicacy in China and Vietnam and Chinese Traditional Medicine believes that the keratin has medicinal powers when it is ground into a fine powder. Pangolin skin is used for making boots, much like a snake skin boot and some still believe that the scales will ward off evil spirits.

    Although this particular species of pangolin is not endangered, it is classified as near threatened. Two other species are listed as endangered. Of the eight pangolin species, only three are considered stable in the wild. For more information on the endangered status of the pangolin go here.

    Pangolins may look like an armadillo or appear to be related to the anteater, but I learned that the pangolin is its own family. The order Pholidota contains only the family Manidae, which has only one genus, Manis.

    Did you know that the pangolin is called the doctor in Tanzania because every part of its body is thought to have healing properties?

  • Sunset Sunday – Sailing Away

    Last week I had the pleasure of watching the most beautiful sunset from the beach. The sky became one big palette of orange and as the sun went behind the clouds they blended together to create a swirl of  fire. It was like I was watching an artist paint a canvas.

    The sailboat in the distance and the birds flying over the water in the foreground make me wish I was sailing off into the sunset.

    Have a fantastic week and don’t forget to take time to watch the sunsets.