Baby's Day Out in Southern California: Fun Places to Go With Babies and Toddlers [Paperback]

JoBea Holt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 31, 2006

Revised second edition of this popular travel and adventure guide for exploring, learning, and having fun with babies and toddlers in Southern California. More than a travel guide, Baby's Day Out is an educational activity book filled with creative ideas to introduce babies and toddlers to a world of new experiences, sights and sounds. More than 200 appropriate places to take babies and toddlers are featured with complete information, directions, hours, accommodations and "Good Things to See and Hear." Line art "Picture Guides" of objects, plants and living creatures toddlers may encounter are great learning aids. Websites, suggested reading and fun neighborhood activities are suggested as well. Whether the destination is a well-known museum, garden or zoo or an offbeat activity such as the schoolbus yard or a racetrack to picnic and see the horses' morning workout, each new experience is designed to enhance a child's later ability to learn and reason, while creating fun adventures for parents and child to experience together. For parents, grandparents, caregivers, and day care or nursery school teachers. And, it makes a great baby shower gift!

Editorial Reviews

Review

Best Travel Guide for children. --L. A. Parent

From the Publisher

What does an award-winning Ph.D in planetary science who has spent the last twenty-two years at JPL developing cutting-edge space and Shuttle Program scientific projects do when she finds herself a stay-at-home mom with twins? Why, of course, she devotes all her energies, talents, and creativity to her most important project - producing two happy, curious, confident youngsters ready to meet and learn about the world around them. And she shares her experiences and insights with us in her first non-NASA book, Baby's Day Out in Southern California.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 335 pages
• Publisher: Gem Guides Book Co; 2 edition (October 31, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1889786365
• ISBN-13: 978-1889786360
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #294,744 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

JoBea Holt is a member of The Climate Project and is writing books for children about Earth. She was a scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for 25 years focusing on NASA's Space Shuttle Earth-observing missions. Her experience training astronauts to observe and photograph the Earth in support of these missions initiated an interest in teaching students about our planet. In 1995, Dr. Holt created KidSat, a Shuttle-based Earth-imaging camera that used NASA's communications and the Internet to allow students in their classrooms to operate the camera during a mission. Dr. Holt received her B.S. at the U.C. Berkeley in 1976, and her Ph.D. at the California Institute to Technology in 1981.She is the author of eight literary and technical books, 45 magazine and journal articles, and 100 conference papers. Her awards include Best Travel Guide for Children, Silver Snoopy Award for NASA Manned Flight Awareness, and FedNet Webbie Award for KidSat.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Southern California tour guide especially geared towards par, September 29, 2003

By 

Jean M. Pfaffinger "spf39" (Sierra Madre, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Baby's Day Out in Southern California: Fun Places to Go With Babies and Toddlers (Paperback)

Finally there is a Southern California tour guide especially geared towards parents of babies and toddlers. Your children learn best through first hand experiences and Baby's Day Out is chock full of great places for the young (and not so young) to experience the things they love like animals, trains, parks, aquariums, tide pools, hands-on museums and more. My 10 year old and 61/2 year old twins still love to visit many of the places listed in JoBea Way's comprehensive guide. They also have a list of many new places for us to visit as well.

The book is broken down into eleven chapters covering major areas of interest for young children: Museums, Our City, Gardens and Nature, The Zoo, Aquariums, Trains and more. There are over 224 separate sites reviewed. Locations covered include the expected Los Angeles and San Diego Zoos as well as many less well known places like the Goodyear Blimp Airfield, Tierra Rejada Farm and Pasadena Unified School Bus Lot.

The book includes many helpful tips for making outings more enjoyable and each review contains a concise description, directions with Thomas Guide page references, and cross references to both similar sites and nearby attractions. Easy to spot icons let parents know if the locations can accommodate single and or double wide strollers (most do), and whether gift shops, snack shops or picnic areas are available so parents can plan accordingly. I love the lists of children's books on topic related to each entry and the special pages with simple graphics of animals or things that go, etc. These pages are designed for young children's use before, during or after their visits. For example, the first picture pages are of cars and trucks children might see on the way to their visit.

The final chapter includes a month-by-month "Things to Look For" section featuring holiday, special events and seasonal changes to watch for geared to Southern California. There are comprehensive listings of Fourth of July displays, Holiday lights, Farmer's Markets and more. These lists alone are a great resource whether you have young children or not.

The number and variety of places listed is truly impressive. Our family has been enjoying working our way through the book and finding many new favorites. I plan to give this book as a shower gift to all my pregnant friends and think the book is a great resource for parents of school age children and teachers also.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Survival book for the S. Cal. Parent, July 31, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Baby's Day Out in Southern California: Fun Places to Go With Babies and Toddlers (Paperback)

Whether you are from S. Cal or just visiting, this is the book for anyone wanting to have an enjoyable day with their children in Southern California. It is filled with ideas and facts about more than just the usual L.A. attractions. And it is geared toward the parent with young children and what is fun and appropriate for them. After I used it once, I don't go anywhere without this book. I just leave it in the car. You'll never be at a loss for places to go and the best way to see them. It is obvious that Dr. Holt did her research and has been to all of these places firsthand. There are no blind recommendations and her ideas for fun and free adventures really inspired me to get out there and explore with my children. Buy this book and you are on the road to years of hassle free outings with your kids.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Guide For Creating Adventure and Wonderful Memories, July 29, 2003

By 

J. Pipich (Pasadena area, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Baby's Day Out in Southern California: Fun Places to Go With Babies and Toddlers (Paperback)

Where was this book when I had my first child? This book is a great way to help plan fun outings with little kids, especially if you're new to parenting or Southern California. It's well organized, very thorough, easy to use, and formatted so that you can get an overview without getting bogged down in too much detail. I like how you can check out the events that occur by month, like the harvest festivals or holiday events. I highly recommend this book for new moms and moms who are looking for adventure and wonderful memories with their kids.