Apps For Kids

Today is Cotton Candy Day! Spun sugar has been around since the 15th century. It’s also known as fairy floss, or candy floss. Maybe that’s because confectioner John Wharton and dentist William Morrison, invented the first cotton candy machine. Don’t floss your teeth with cotton candy, or you’ll need to see a dentist!

An organization in Oregon called Pile of Puppies, is trying to make fun memories for some very sick kids. The group brings a large litter of puppies, and piles them on top of chronically ill children. For a little while, kids can just focus on the joy of being covered in cute, wiggly, puppies!

14-year-old Miles Wu, has been folding origami creatures out of paper, for many years. His hobby paid off, after winning the Thermo Fisher Scientific Junior Innovators Challenge. He was awarded $25,000, for creating an origami structure that can hold 10,000 times its own weight. That’s like a car, supporting 4,000 elephants.

One way to keep warm, is with mittens. Celebrate Mitten Tree Day, by decorating a tree with mittens, and a sign telling people to help themselves. The first Saturday of the month is also Play Outside Day. Whether you have fun in the sun, or a playful gray day, don’t forget your mittens!

Today is Put On Your Own Shoes Day. I think most of you already do that. If you have a baby in the house, give them a chance to put their own shoes on; they might surprise you! It’s also Microwave Oven Day. Have you ever microwaved a marshmallow? It’s really neat!

If you don’t like doggie kisses, you’d better stay away from Ozzy. The French and bull mastiff mix has the longest tongue of any living dog. From the tip of his snout to the tip of his tongue, it measures 7.83 inches long. Ozzy’s tongue has stuck out of his mouth his whole life.

After 100 years of being extinct in Romania’s Carpathian Mountains, griffon vultures will soon be reintroduced to the Făgăraș area. Nicknamed Europe’s Yellowstone, the national park will be a refuge for wildlife, where griffon vultures will join Eurasion lynxes, wolves, brown bears, beavers, and bison, to help restore the ecosystem.

For a couple of weeks in December, the Geminids meteor showers are visible in the night sky. The meteors appear near the constellation Gemini, created from particles of the asteroid 3200 Phaethon. The Geminids won’t peak until the 13th, but you can look for some each night. Bundle up and bring cocoa!

Let’s celebrate earth today. Not the planet Earth, but dirt. It’s World Soil Day! After you play in the dirt, you can celebrate Bathtub Party Day. Make it nice and bubbly! It’s also International Ninja Day. Move silently, and see if you can slip around unseen.

Today is Faux Fur Friday. Leave the real fur on the animals, and wear a fake fur coat instead. How about one with pink tiger stripes? Another way to keep warm, is with a dashing sweater vest, to celebrate Sweater Vestival. Maybe you can even find one that lights up! Today, sleeves are overrated.