San Anselmo

Speak to Me, producer of Marin's intelligent and inspiring series of events for women, has partnered with the YES! Foundation, Ross Valley School District Parent Education, and KIDDO! to do two benefit screenings (100% of proceeds go to YES! and KIDDO!) of the film Miss Representation. If you aren't familiar with the film, it has won all sorts of awards and has received accolades and praise from everyone from Oprah to Common Sense Media.

The film was written, produced, and directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom, and exposes how mainstream media contribute to the under-representation of women in positions of power and influence in America. The film challenges the media’s limited and often disparaging portrayals of women and girls, which make it difficult for women to achieve leadership positions and for the average woman to feel powerful herself.

Common Sense Media says "It's informative and enlightening and will be a total eye-opener for girls and their mothers. Show it to your girls AND your boys".

You deserve a night out at the movies right? And you can help raise a little much-needed money for our schools while you're at it.

The film screenings will take place on:

• Wednesday, January 9, 2013 at Drake High School Little Theatre, 1327 Sir Francis Drake Boulevard, San Anselmo. 100% of net proceeds go to the YES! Foundation
• Wednesday, January 16, 2013 at Mill Valley Middle School, 425 Sycamore Avenue, Mill Valley. 100% of net proceeds go to the KIDDO! Foundation

Parents and parents-to-be in Marin have another valuable resource with the opening of Pomegranate Prenatal Yoga and Parent Center in San Anselmo. Located in the heart of downtown San Anselmo, Pomegranate is a sanctuary for expecting and new families in the area, offering prenatal yoga and other movement classes, birth and parenting education programs and workshops, community resources, a mama boutique and more.

Parents can drop in for a class at the center for $18, or become a Pomegranate member and enjoy unlimited yoga and childcare. Monthly memberships cost $89 and include unlimited yoga and movement classes, free childcare (offered Thursdays and Fridays), and discounts on classes, workshops, and purchases in the boutique.

Come check out Pomegranate at their grand opening celebration this Saturday, October 6, from 11 am to 2 pm. Enjoy live music, face and belly painting, family yoga, and mini spa treatments.

As a typical second-grader, my son is obsessed with all things LEGO. The little plastic bricks hold an undeniable appeal to kids of all ages, and a lot of grownups, too. For his recent birthday party we turned to Marin's Play-Well TEKnologies, who operate an awesome LEGO shop and drop-in LEGO activity center in San Anselmo. In our case, Play-Well came to our house for a very successful, fun, and memorable birthday bash.

Drew the LEGO guy, a friendly college student, showed up at our house before the party with a hand truck and several crates of LEGOs. We figured that he must have brought a couple thousand dollars worth of the plastic bricks and pieces, all of which were sorted by category or color. One bin held only the little LEGO people, one held basic building bricks, one held little weapons and decorations, and so on.

Thinking of moving to Marin? The Marin County real estate experts at SF North, a team of Alain Pinel agents suggest some great neighborhoods to consider in this guest article.

Many of the prospective home buyers we meet these days are couples from San Francisco who are moving to Marin because they have young children or will be having kids soon. They’re attracted to the area because of the schools, sun, access to nature, and community, but they’re often concerned about commute distance to the city and many are working with a budget that limits their choices somewhat, because let’s face it—even after the price correction of the last few years homes in Marin County are not cheap.

When we begin working with new clients it’s useful to ask them to create a top ten list of the features and characteristics they want in a home. Here’s a pretty typical example of what we see from buyers lately looking for a three bedroom, in no particular order:

Music Together of Marin's winter session starts on January 7 and runs through March 23. Music Together is an award-winning international music and movement enrichment program for children ages infant to 5 years. Classes meet once a week for 45 minutes of musical joy.

Music Together classes are based on the recognition that all children are musical. All children can learn to sing in tune, keep a beat and participate with confidence in the music of our culture. Central to the Music Together approach is that young children learn best from the role model of parents/caregivers who are actively making music. The program brings families together by providing a rich musical environment that can continue at home and throughout the context of daily life. Each session families receive  new materials, including a CD and book, to use at home. Come preview a free class and become part of a growing musical community.

Marin Mommies is pleased to present a new series of interviews profiling Marin County preschools and preschool programs. As part of our Marin Preschool Guide, these new Preschool Profiles are yet another tool to help parents make informed decisions when undertaking the important task of choosing a preschool for their children. Interested in having your preschool considered for this series? Please contact us.

Our first profiled preschool is San Anselmo Montessori School, located at 100 Shaw Drive in San Anselmo. We asked director Michele King some questions about her school. Contact them by calling (415) 457-3428 or by visiting www.sananselmomontessori.org.

Please describe your school’s educational philosophy. What’s it all about?
San Anselmo Montessori School (SAMS) is based on the Montessori philosophy and is accredited by the American Montessori Society (AMS). In a multi-aged classroom, children have the freedom to progress at their own pace, explore their world, make discoveries, and draw their own conclusions. Children gain knowledge, confidence, and leadership skills that enable them to offer a positive contribution to their community.

This summer the owners and operators of iCAMP are offering Createch Studios and Summer Sessions—an after-school program and week-long summer camps out of their new studio space in San Anselmo. After running 5 years of iCAMP and the Children’s Technology Workshop enrichment programs in various schools around Marin, they have now branched out on their own and partnered up with the San Anselmo Recreation Department to offer a new space for kids to play, learn, and create their own projects. The after school program is currently running now and includes homework assistance, outdoor activities, and creative technology time. Createch offers families a free first visit to the after school program to check out the studios and see what it's all about.

Activities for children ages 8-14 include programming their own video games (and drawing their own characters!), designing, developing, creating, and animating their own stop motion movie, or exploring the world of art and design. At Createch, kids can even be a music producer by creating their own tracks, album art, and more.

“Wow!” my son shouted as we walked in the door and laid eyes on all the LEGO kits and pieces in the room at Play-Well Teknologies in San Anselmo. We have been trying to visit “the LEGO place” (as my son calls it) and try one of their drop-in open-play sessions for a while now, but something always seemed to come up. We finally made it there last week with some friends for a playdate, and we all had a blast.

Play-Well TEKnologies' Marin Engineering Center features a large area dedicated just for the drop-in play. In fact, it's the largest drop-in LEGO center in the country. My son was in awe—they seemed to have every type of LEGO imaginable. Dozens of bins keep the LEGO pieces, reportedly over a million in all, organized by color, size, type, or theme, including wheels, ships, planes, engines, pirates and much, much more.