contents This month’s features 6
9
Sharing cultures Families share their homes and learn from exchange students.
18
It’s date night Area couples give us suggestions for a night out.
12
First love
16
Post-divorce dating
A child’s first crush means the world.
18
Camp Guide 2013
43
Sunny citrus
Experts offer tips on how to balance your kids’ emotions and your feelings for a new flame.
Check here for overnight camp listings for coed, boys, girls and special needs camps, along with spring break day camp details.
Oranges, lemons and more brighten up winter meals.
In every issue
On the cover
Artist’s Muse ...................30
Special to WNC Parent
Home-school Happenings .34 Divorced Families ............36
Are you a member?
Story Times .....................39
Join the conversation, post photos and connect with other parents at WNCParent.com. Look for WNC Parent on Facebook and Twitter.
Nature Center Notes.........41 FEAST .............................42 Calendar .........................46 Kids Page ........................53
4
Katie Wadington, editor
And so it begins. It is cold, it is January (as I write this), and summer camp is on my mind. Kids screaming with excitement as they zip line into a cold lake on a 90-degree day. Counselors leading a hike under sunny skies up to the top of an area peak with gorgeous views. Campers sitting around a picnic table in the shade, making crafts. Boys and girls enjoying a campfire, marshmallows and all, singing the songs they’ve learned through the week. (And momentarily there, I was transported from a blustery day into the middle of July.) Every year it amazes me how many opportunities are available to children in WNC. From high adventure to traditional camp experiences, from a few days of overnight camp to weeks away from home. Between these overnight listings and the day camp listings that will be in the March issue, I have a hard time deciding where to send my kids while I’m at work over the summer. You’ll find our Overnight Camp Guide starting on Page 18. But most people aren’t thinking about camp this month. It’s February, the month of love. So many stories in this issue are focused on relationships. Do you remember your first crush? The boy or girl who made your world just stop? I certainly remember mine. Our story on Page 12 gets into kids and crushes, including tips for how to deal with them. We also talked to some experts for advice in our story on how children deal with post-divorce dating. Find that on Page 16. Speaking of dating, we talked to several couples about their favorite date night spots. And they offer a wealth of new ideas in the story on Page 9. It’s a roundup I was happy to have for my own date nights. Happy Valentine’s Day to you! I’m headed back to my desk to work on the day camp edition of the Camp Guide, out next month.
.com
Librarian’s Picks...............38 Growing Together............40
Escape to camp
P.O. Box 2090, Asheville, NC 28802 PRESIDENT AND PUBLISHER Randy Hammer WNC PARENT EDITOR FEATURES EDITOR Katie Wadington — 232-5829 Bruce Steele kwadington@citizen-times.com bsteele@citizen-times.com ADVERTISING/CIRCULATION Brittany Martin — 232-5898, bymartin@gannett.com CALENDAR CONTENT Due by Feb. 10. E-mail calendar@wncparent.com ADVERTISING DEADLINE Advertising deadline for the March issue is Feb. 12.
W N C PA R E N T | F E B R UA R Y 2 0 1 3