I signed up for a few days of volunteering with the Des Moines Sports Commission – hosts of the 2009 AAU Junior Olympics. The event will run from July 27th thru August 8th and there’s lots of ways to get involved. Here are a few of the categories where volunteers are needed:

• Athlete Registration
• Baseball Volunteer
• Baton Twirling Volunteer
• Beach Volleyball Volunteer
• Boys Basketball Volunteer
• Cheerleading Volunteer
• General Volunteer
• Girls Basketball Volunteer
• Gymnastics Volunteer
• Jump Rope Volunteer
• Karate Volunteer
• Power Lifting Volunteer
• Swimming Volunteer
• Table Tennis Volunteer
• Taekwondo Volunteer
• Track and Field Volunteer
• Trampoline & Tumbling Volunteer
• Weightlifting Volunteer
• Wrestling Volunteer

Visit the Des Moines Sports Commission’s Volunteer Webpage for more details and to sign up!

Now that is unacceptable! So, to inspire more people to visit the Arboretum, I hid a cache out there amongst the Oaks:

As you can see, things are getting rather lush out at the Arboretum – beautiful place to spend a few hours with nature. Just on the other side of this hiking path are some lounge chairs where you can chill and listen to the birds and enjoy the breeze and the sun.

Whoa! I got lost in a moment there… *ahem* My mind went here:

Even if you’re not into geocaching (muggle say what?), the Arboretum is a great place to find your happy place.

The rooftop offered up these amazing views of the Arboretum which is leaping into spring no holds barred. Click for a larger version:

As you can see from the one picture, the rooftop is home to both grass and plants. We were working to re-soil the area – soil mixed with small pebbles, add fertilizer, and repair an area that had been erroded over the winter months. Underneath the pebbly soil is a tarp and under that is a layer of small cups that hold water for the grass and plants. It’s ingenious and pretty! Two of my favorite things!

Note: We did finally figure out that it was a baby Fox – elliptical eyes and the 3 series yelps are the give-aways.

I called my friend at the Brenton Arboretum and Kay gave me the details to get ahold of Dallas County Wildlife Conservation to rescue the little pup. But they’re not answering on Sunday. So, Jen and I are keeping an eye on the little cutie until tomorrow. Jen got these awesome pics while I was making with the fox mommy calls – I have mad fly yelping skills yo.

Click to see a bigger version:

The full size image is about 6 inches x 8 inches, of which the kids will get to take home as a poster along with a red piratey carabiner “adventurer’s clip”. Here’s a smaller version.  I created this in Gimp and I learned a lot of new techniques that I’ll be writing about over the next few days.

Got there at my regular time and recruited Josh to help me pick out books to read. We used our imagination and pretended that we were in race cars while “driving” down to the book center. We picked out a few books and just haaaaaad to quickly read the “Under the sea” pop-up book. It was really cool! We’d laugh together whenever one of the popups “scared” us. We then “drove” back to the main area where I took a book over to read some more to Hallie. We had a good time and she smiled whenever I’d make the silly voices for the characters. Of course, after every chapter, we just haaaaaad to pause for a popup book and some knock-knock jokes.

Time came for pet therapy – I got to meet Babe, a beautiful Golden Retriever – what a spunky sweet dog! The children spent time petting him and throwing the ball so he’d retrieve it. The time passes too quickly and we said goodbye to Babe until next week.

So, if you’re looking for a great opportunity to volunteer with kids and make a difference, check out Childserve, they have a variety of ways you can get involved.

My first time volunteering here and I was a bit nervous, but as soon as I saw the first kid smile at me I felt right at home. I spent some time walking with Lauren, we were on the hunt for anyone not wearing green….and pretending we were leprechauns casting magic spells on the “un-irish”. It’s ok, even though I’m not Irish, Lauren knew I was an honorary Leprechaun….mostly because of my small stature *ahem* and propensity for mischief….um yeah… ’bout that.

Then I got to read a Hardy Boys mystery to Lauren and Hallie – it was really good – they smiled alot when I’d make all the silly voices that go with the character. We got thru all of Chapter 1 before I just haaaad to tell them some knock-knock jokes before heading out for the night.

So, if you’re looking for a great opportunity to volunteer with kids and make a difference, check out Childserve, they have a variety of ways you can get involved.

Now, I’ve just got to get focused and plan out the details since Earth Day is right around the corner. Eeep!

Check out the Brenton Arboretum website or their blog for ways that you can get involved or enjoy this beautiful slice of Iowa. Breathe fresh air often – I hear that’s really good for ya.

From the Brenton Arboretum website: “This unique central Iowa arboretum combines the horticultural study of trees with a commitment to natural landscape management and conservation. At the Brenton Arboretum, visitors can study over 2,500 trees and shrubs, surrounded by a beautiful natural setting of native prairie, wetlands, a lake, pond and streams.”

Read more about this beautiful Arboretum!

Trumpet virtuoso and smooth vocalist, Byron Stripling, and the band amazed me with both jazz classics and fresh contemporary jazz compilations! Byron’s ability on the trumpet was mind-numbing. If you’ve ever tried to play the trumpet, it would astound you to see just how effortless and comfortable Byron is even during the most complex arrangements. Another good time volunteering!