Pittsfield Trys To Turn Black Friday Plaid / Pittsfield.com

My soon-to-be-second-grader and two of her soon-to-be-second-grade friends stayed up late last Friday night to watch Williamstown Theatre Festival's free outdoor performance of "Dracula."

The free glow-in-the-dark plastic fangs handed out to the kids were a nice kid-friendly touch, but I still had concerns about the children's reactions to the scary nature of the story. My fears were put to rest when the blood spurting from the body of the poor girl whose death had to be violently assured caused giggles, not screams, from the 7-year-olds. For days after, the kids chattered about how that scene was staged, with my daughter's best friend confident in her

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Are We There Yet?: A/C and Ice Cream

By Rebecca Dravis,
02:07PM / Friday, July 19, 2013

Have you melted yet? It's hard enough keeping the kids entertained in the summer without a certified heat wave gumming up the works. These days the usual whines of "I'm bored" are peppered with frequent complaints of "I'm hot." What's a parent to do? Get thee to an air-conditioned space -- and I have a tried-and-true suggestion for you: the library. Any library will do; they tend to be air-conditioned. My family took refuge in the Milne Library earlier this week, partaking in cool air and free wireless. Even if there is not a specific children's program running, you can pull out an activity set (or, in

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Are We There Yet?: Science, Sand, Circus and Sales

By Rebecca Dravis,
09:30AM / Friday, July 12, 2013

My 7-year-old daughter's pediatrician just advised us to avoid bubble baths for a while. I explained to him that her baths don't start out as bubble baths, in that I don't dump three capfuls of Mr. Bubble under running water. No, her baths turn into soapy affairs because I buy her cheap shampoo to do experiments with in the tub. It's pretty amazing what the child can come up with with a bottle of V05, a couple cups, an old bulb syringe from when she was a baby, an ice cube tray and some rubber bands. "She's going to be a scientist!" her doctor said in amazement as I shared this with him.

Quite possibly, which is why I am thrilled to

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Are We There Yet?: A Fourth to Remember

By Rebecca Dravis,
10:39AM / Thursday, July 04, 2013

There's family fun times two this Fourth of July in the Berkshires.

You have your choice of two parades: 10 a.m. in Pittsfield (starting at West Housatonic and South streets) and 11 a.m. in Williamstown (Southworth to Main to Spring streets).

You have your choice of two readings of the Declaration of Independence: 2 p.m. at the Williams College Museum of Art in Williamstown (by the folks at Williamstown Theatre Festival) and 3 p.m. at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox (by company members).

And you have your choice of two baseball games followed by fireworks: 6:30 p.m. in North Adams (the SteepleCats at Joe Wolfe Field) and 7 p.m. in Pittsfield (the Suns at Wahconah

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