The Lake Tahoe School in Incline Village, NV is gearing up for summer with their Summer Series 2010.   The summer series has something for every child between the ages of 6 and 14 and includes outdoor adventures and learning programs to satisfy your child’s imagination, adventure and curiosity.

Programs include:
~ Yosemite Adventure Overnight Camp for kids 9 -14,  July 12 – 15.  Cost is $1200 ($900 if you register by April 15th) and includes four days at Yosemite National Park and campers will bike ride, swim, rock climb, hike and more.  Limit 10 campers.

~ High Sierra Rock Climbing & Exploration Overnight Camp for kids 9 -14, July 19 – 22. Cost is $1200 ($900 if you register by April 15th).  In its third year, this camp starts with checking into the Clair Tappaan Lodge on Donner Summit.  Days will be spent climbing with professional guides. Limit of 10 campers.

~ Lake Tahoe Kayak Camping Voyage Overnight Camp for kids 9 -14, July 26 – 29.  Cost is $1200 ($900 if you register by April 15th). Spend a night a DL Bliss Campground on the West Shore while learning basic kayak techniques.  The next day wake up and kayak along the shore to Emerald Bay. For the next two days kids will explore the pristine waters of Emerald Bay, hike up Fannette Island and spend two nights at the Emerald Bay Boat-in Campground.

~ Day Camps for ages 6 -9.  Camp Fee is $375 (register early and save up to 25%).  July 12 – 15 and July 19 – 22.  Kids can participate in four mornings of a learning experience of your choise while spending the afternoons with a new adventure each day.  Learning activities include: Drama course; computer music workshop, science in the outdoors, wet and wild watercolor and Rock and Roll.  Afternoon events include: hiking the flume trail, rafting the upper Truckee River, miniature golf and exploring the Tahoe shoreline

~ Day Camps for kids 8 - 14.  Camp Fee is $500 (register early and save up to 25%).  Camp dates are July 12 – 15 and July 19 – 22.  Learning activities for this age group include: photography, theater improv, needle and sewing crafts, music exploraiton and rockets.  Afternoon events include kayaking to Brockway Springs, sailing, rock climbing on Donner and whitewater rafting on the lower truckee.

If a half day is best for you and your child, then consider either the half day learning program or the half day outdoor adventure.   Prices for half day are:  Ages 6 – 9 $275 for Outdoor Adventure only and $200 for Learning Program.  For children ages 8 – 14, $400 for the half day Outdoor Adventure program and $200 for the half day Learning Experience.

There are many options to take advantage off.  To learn more contact the Lake Tahoe School at 775.831.5828 or visit www.laketahoeschoolsummer.org

The produce stands at farmers markets and grocery stores are beginning to fill with all the delicious summer fruits.  The selection is abundant from apricots, asian pears and grapes to nectarines, papaya and watermelon.  What to pick to take home and enjoy is up to you.  How to pick the best fruits is another matter.  In an earlier blog on spring fruits and vegetables it referenced a wonderful website foodfit.com.  A visit back to this site is all that was needed to get all the info needed to select the best summer fruits.  Below is a sampling of summer fruits and what to look for at the grocery store.

Cantaloupe: Should yield to slight pressure at the stem end. Sweet scent. Avoid melons with a pronounced yellow color or moldy aroma that indicates overripeness.

Cherries: Stems should be green and flexible. Avoid soft spots, bruises, and splits. Red cherries are ripe when deep red. White and yellow varieties are ripe when flushed with pink.

Crenshaw Melon: Should have a mottled, green-yellow ridged rind and orange-pink flesh. Should have a strong aroma.

Figs: Firm fruit that yields to slight pressure. Color varies according to variety from pale green/yellow to almost black. Sweet aroma.

Grapes: Look for plump clusters of grapes that are securely attached to their green stems.

Honeydew Melon: Rind (skin) should be a greenish color. A yellow color indicates that fruit is not yet ripe.Skin should be smooth. Flesh is light green and orange-colored. Avoid large melons with bruises, cuts or punctures in the rind.

Mangoes: Yellow-red skin. Should yield to light pressure. Sweet aroma. Smaller ones are best.

Nectarines: Fruit should be plump with a sweet aroma. Avoid hard or shriveled fruit; also avoid green fruit. The skin should be smooth.

Papaya: Ripe: yellow skin with deep orange flesh that yields to slight pressure. Sweet aroma.
Unripe: green skin, firm.

Peaches: Yields to slight pressure. Very fragrant. Avoid soft spots, bruises, or greenish color.

Plums: Yields to slight pressure. Plump, heavy for size.

Raspberries: Firm, plump, fully colored berries

Strawberries: Select berries with a good red color and an intact green, leafy hull. Avoid berries with soft or brown spots. Huge berries often have hollow centers and little flavor or juice.

Watermelon: Should yield to slight pressure at the stem end. Sweet scent. Skin may be solid green, green-striped or mottled with white. The flesh is crisp and extremely juicy with small, hard, black seeds throughout. Avoid melons that are very soft.

We love our dogs here at Schwartz-Stanton Group. We have such a variety too including Finn (a lab/sharpei mix), Sam (a german shephard mix) Jesse (a border collie mix), Rudy (a blue heeler/australian cattle dog mix) and Bentley, the pure bred chow chow.   Summer is time for lots of fun and a great time to enjoy with your dog.  You’ll be spending more time outdoors.  While all this fun is good, it is also the time when you pet is at risk for heat-related illness and injury.    Here are some tips to keep your dog cool but this does not replace advice or care from a veterinarian.  If your pet shows any signs of distress or injury contact your vet immediately.

Sunburn - Pets can get sunburned.  Short-haired pets, white and lightly colored pets are especially susceptible.   Long-term exposure can lead to skin damage and sometimes even skin cancer.  If your pet is fair-haired, limit the amount of time your pet is in direct sunlight and that includes sitting in a sunny window.

Heat Stroke – Watch for signs of heat stroke.  This includes rapid panting, hot skin, twitching muscles.  Heat stroke or heat stress can happen quickly and it can be fatal.   To prevent heat stroke, keep you pet indoors during the high heat of midday.  Be sure to have the air conditioning on and/or place your pet in a well ventilated area with circulating fans.  If you pet show signs of heat stroke get your pet to your veterinarian as soon as possible.  Large double-coated breeds, dogs breed for cold climates and those with short faces are at higher risk.

Water - Always provide your dog with plenty of fresh water.

Exercise - Refrain from exercising your dog during the hottest part of the day.  Try switching your daily walks to early morning or after sundown when the weather is cooler.  Watch for hot pavement and sandy beaches. . .paws can burn easily.

Vaccinations – Be sure you vaccinations are current and talk to your vet about a preventative treatment program for fleas and ticks.

Never Leave Your Dog in a Parked Car – Heat is heat even when parked in the shade with the windows open.  Don’t leave your dog in a parked car during the summer.  It is dangerous and it puts your dog at risk.

Provide Shade – If you dog loves to lounge in the yard or hang out of the deck, be sure there is a shady place for your dog to enjoy and provide plenty of water.

Have fun this summer.

Spring is here and with that come some of the most beautiful wildflowers anywhere.  There is something about a wildflower that brings a smile to your face.  Perhaps it is the simple beauty of something so natural since we are constantly surround by manufactured things in our daily life.  This got me to thinking about the wildflowers in Lake Tahoe.  What are the names and colors?  I didn’t know the answers and horticulture and botany were not a main focus of my eduction. Something I think I need to change as an adult. Without the knowledge, the next best thing to do is do some googling. I found a website that detail the wildflowers by color range.  Below is straight from the website and although it may not be a complete list of every wildflower it is a very good start.

Yellow – Orange Flowers
Buttercup: The first plant to flower in wet mountain meadows. The waxy, yellow blossoms consist of five petals about 1/2 inch across, and grow in low mats.
Mountain Mule Ears and Arrow-Leaved Balsamroot:  Both of these plants have yellow sunflower-like blossoms and are found growing on dry slopes and hillsides. The leaves of the mule ears look and feel like donkey ears with long oblong, velvet feeling leaves. The leaves of the balsamroot are triangular or arrowhead shaped with sparsely covered coarser hair.
Sulphur Flower: This member of the buckwheat family is commonly found in dry, rocky places. As the name suggests, it is “sulphur” yellow in color. It is especially abundant around the Taylor Creek area.
Blue – Purple Flowers
Dwarf Alpine Aster: These lavendar, low growing daisy-like flowers adorn the borders of drying meadows, ponds or shaded forest edges. They bloom in August and into September when other wildflowers have faded.
Meadow Penstemon: This penstemon grows in moist or drying meadows. Its deep purple flowers are arranged in whorls around the upper portion of the stem. There are many members of the penstemon family varying in color from red, pink, white and blue.
Lupine: The numerous species of Lupine are difficult to tell apart, but the group itself is easily recognized by the palmate leaf (leaflets originating from a common point, like the fingers of a hand). The flowers are usually blue and ordinarily grow in dry sandy areas, although some species are found in wet meadows.
Pink – Red Flowers
Thistle: Often thought of as a weed, bees and hummingbirds favor thistle for their nectar. The flowers can be red, pink or purple and are found in meadow borders and open forests.
Columbine: A well known flower found growing in moist areas. The colorful blossoms my be found from May to August, depending on elevation.
Indian Paintbrush: The showy parts of the paintbrush are not the flower petals, but ragged-edged bracts found below each flower and floral sepals. They are found growing in moist areas.
Snow Plant: Although snow plants bloom early, they do not formally push their way through snowbanks. Like the pine drops, snow plants lack chlorophyll and derive their energy from dead plant material.
Shooting Star: An easily recognized pink/purplish flower found in wet alpine meadows.
White Flowers
California Corn Lily: Perhaps one of the most common plants found in moist areas. It is often called skunk cabbage because of its strong odor.
Cow Parsnip: Easily recognized by the umbrella shaped cluster of flowers and large palm shaped leaves. Found in moist meadows.
Mariposa Lily: Growing in dry, bushy places, this member of the lily family can be distinguished by the three cream colored petals which resemble a poppy.
Ranger Buttons: Found along streams and other moist places. Sometimes confused with cow parsnip, the Ranger button flowers are in fuzzy balls, not clustered in large flat-topped umbels as in cow parsnip.
Common Yarrow: Flourishes in brushy areas, open woodlands, dry meadows and roadsides. It immediately invades places where the natural vegetation has been disturbed.

What’s next?  Go on a hike and see the wildflowers. You may not know where to start so I googled again and found an organization that does Lake Tahoe wildflower hikes.  The site has an event calendar, map of trail locations, hikes by difficulty, trail conditions, flower pictures and more. The people who run Lake Tahoe Wildflower Hikes seem to know what they are talking about.  They teach a wildflower course in the spring and summer at the Lake Tahoe Community College.  I haven’t registered for a hike yet but it is on my list for this spring/summer.  To register for a hike visit www.wildflowershikes.com