Renton, WA

Here are the top 5 holiday light displays in the Seattle area, courtesy of the Seattle Times.

For a daytime decorations, try the downtown Seattle “Nutcracker March“. This is a scavenger hunt, map provided, where you can wander around the downtown area and find sixty large nutcracker statues. Each is uniquely decorated by local artists.

Clam Lights, Renton

Take a moment to enjoy the holidays and walk around Gene Coulon Memorial Beach Park in Renton. Around 220,000 lights will shine from 5-9 p.m. daily, through Jan. 1. 1201 Lake Washington Blvd. N.

Auburn City Hall

Last year, Auburn City Hall was aglow with more than 52,000 lights and a holiday tree. Try to find all the lights on this year’s display at 4 p.m. daily, through March 10. 25 W. Main St.

Fantasy Lights at Spanaway Park

See 300 displays and thousands of sparkling lights without leaving the comfort of your car. Enjoy the two-mile drive along Spanaway Lake from 5:30-9 p.m. daily through Dec. 31. 14905 Bresemann Blvd. S. Cost is $13 a vehicle.

Kaibara Park, Kent

Take a break from holiday shopping in Kent to see the 40,000 lights on display at this park at various times through Jan. 2. First Avenue North and West Meeker Street.

Zoolights, Tacoma

Come celebrate the 20th anniversary of Zoolights at the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium and walk among 70 displays and more than 500,000 lights from 5-9 p.m. daily, through Jan. 1. Closed Dec. 24. Don’t forget your camera! 5400 N. Pearl St. Tickets cost $5 to $7.

Visit Santa at his house at the SW corner of South 3rd Street and Wells Avenue South on Fridays and Saturdays from December 7 to 22. Free downloadable pictures with Santa will be taken on Fridays from 4 to 7 p.m. and Saturdays from 1 to 4 p.m.

Enjoy the sights and sounds of the Argosy Christmas Ship as it makes its annual visit to Gene Coulon Memorial Beach Park on Monday, December 3. The ship will be just off the lake’s shore from 8:00 to 8:20 p.m.

Each night, from December 1st through 23rd, the Argosy Christmas Ship™ sails to different Puget Sound waterfront communities, over 45 in total. The purpose is to bring communities together to celebrate the holiday season. On shore, people can gather around a bonfire, and sing carols. On board, a local choir sings. The choir is broadcast over state-of-the-art speaker systems, letting those on shore join in the festivities.

If you don’t feel like being an on-shore caroler, you can either join on board the Christmas Ship™ or one of the Parade ships that follow, or join with friends and neighbors to gather together for your own caroling tradition. If you own your own boat, feel welcome to join in the festival and help form the largest holiday floating parade in the world.

In addition to good cheer, family, and friends, a portion of all ticket sales benefits The Seattle Times Fund For The Needy, an annual program that raises money for several charitable organizations in the Puget Sound area. Tickets are available through this link.

Ivar’s Clam Lights at Gene Coulon Memorial Beach Park begins Friday, November 30. Ivar’s Clam Lights holiday festival kicks off its 14th annual opening night with carolers and families singing around Gene Coulon Memorial Beach Park bonfire. Take a ride on Santa’s Covered Wagon, enjoy holiday entertainment by the Wednesday Night Jam Band and watch the arrival of the Rainier Yacht Club’s Parade of Boats. The fun starts at 6:30 p.m., with the official lighting ceremony at 7:20 p.m. Clam Lights runs nightly through January 1.

The Nov. 30 opening night schedule will be as follows:

*
6:30 p.m. Live entertainment from Mach One Jazz Band
*
7:15 p.m. Welcome from City of Renton Mayor Kathy Keolker
*
7:20 p.m. Lights illuminate
*
7:30 p.m. Parade of Boats, presented by the Rainier Yacht Club

Two more free natural yard care workshops are being provided by the Master Gardeners. The Master Gardeners are a great local resource, despite the pompous title. Master Gardener volunteers are trained para-professionals who work in the community as horticulture advisors and resources for home gardeners. They are an organization which started right here in King County in 1972. The program now exists in all 50 states and many other countries.

You will often find them at local events, and in places such as your local library. For these workshops, they welcome beginners and provide “light refreshments” at each. Their programs focus on reducing yard waste and reducing maintenance.

Beautify Your Boulevard
Thursday, November 8th, 6:30pm to 8:00pm
Highlands Neighborhood Center 800 Edmonds Avenue NE; Renton

Please join Master Gardener Mary Machala for an informative, creative and fun hands on presentation about inexpensive steps you can take to transform your parking strip or sidewalk area from a rough grassy patch to an attractive, colorful planting strip. Learn about improving soil and adding appropriate plants while reducing yard waste and maintenance to benefit your yard’s appeal and health.

Gardening with Native Plants
Thursday, November 15th, 6:30pm to 8:00pm
Highlands Neighborhood Center 800 Edmonds Avenue NE; Renton

Are you seeking plants that look great, require less maintenance, attract wildlife and can take care of themselves? Then please join Master Gardener and Native Plant Steward Ed LaCrosse, for a very informative and insightful presentation on incorporating native plants into your landscape. Improve your knowledge of building a healthier yard while reducing maintenance, yard debris, and reliance on pesticides and fertilizers.

For more information, please contact Spencer Orman at 425 430-7396.

KUBE 93 Haunted House

Renton 7-10 p.m. today, 7-10 p.m. Monday and Tuesday; 7-11 p.m. Wednesday. 3701 E. Valley Road. Cost: $13 on Halloween; $12 other dates. Click here for more info.

UPDATE: This haunted house was just blogged as the best in the Seattle area.

Slightly further away …

Carpinito Brothers U-pick Pumpkin Patch and Corn Maze

Carpinitos is my favorite stop in the spring and summer for both plants and vegetables. Check them out in the fall for fun Halloween activites.

Kent Pumpkin-carving kits, tractor-pulled hayrides and prizes. 9 a.m.-dusk, through Wednesday. Carpinito Brothers Farm, at the corner of South 277th Street and West Valley Highway and Highway 167. (253-854-5692 or

Serena Farms U-pick Pumpkin Patch

Kent U-pick pumpkin patch, corn maze and hayrides. 9 a.m.-dusk today; noon-dusk through Wednesday. 4400 S. 212th St. (jser316@hotmail.com)

Follow this link for more “grown-up” events in Seattle, from another 451 press blogger at http://www.about-seattlewa.com.

A community art project entitled “Cedar Salmon” is on display at the Renton Public Library now through November 3rd. This event is sponsored by Friends of the Cedar River Watershed.

The project involves ten life-sized salmon silhouettes created from cedar planks by local artists, which will be displayed at a series of sites along the salmon’s migration route from Puget Sound to the Cedar River Education Center in North Bend. The showing at the library will coincide with weekend visits by naturalists on October 13, 20, 21, 27, 28, and November 3 to explain the life cycle of the salmon and the importance of the Cedar River as prime salmon habitat.

The art is available for sale in an online auction that will raise money for the Friends of the Cedar River Watershed’s salmon education program and restoration projects.

Olde Fashion Halloween Party in the Main Street Square
On Saturday, October 27, from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m., enjoy free games, treats, and festive decorations at The Olde Fashion Halloween Party in the Main Street Square (enter at the 200 block of Main Avenue South). Come in costume or make your own there. Also from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m., downtown Renton businesses will host Trick or Treating. Look for the orange “Trick or Treat” signs in storefront windows of participating businesses throughout downtown.

Boo Carnival at Renton Community Center
Children ages 2 to 8 years, accompanied by an adult, are invited to the annual Boo Carnival on Saturday, October 27, 10:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., at the Renton Community Center, for a spirited time of crafts, games, and inflatables. Carnival pass for all activities is $6 per child. This event is co-sponsored by Stoneway Concrete. For more information, call 425-430-6700 or visit www.Rentonwa.gov.

If you want to venture a little further away, the Kent Parks and Recreation Department, et al, is sponsoring a Halloween Party at the Kent Commons on Saturday October 27th from 3:00-6:00 PM

Sit down and vote!

If you are not already signed up to receive an absentee ballot, you can find out where you need to go by visiting www.vote.wa.gov. You must be registered, even if it is just a change of address, at least 30 days before the election. If you want to automatically receive an absentee ballot, you must submit a written application, but you can still get the details from the website.

I got my absentee ballot in the mail yesterday. If you are like the majority of King County, which votes absentee, so did you. The tricky part is that the booklet explaining the issues was mailed earlier, and is now lost under a pile of paperwork somewhere in your den/office/living room.

It looks like this:

Got it? Good. Now, while you are thinking about it, open the pamphlet and fill out your ballot and stick it in the mail.

On the ballot this time are the following issues:

Initiative 960
Should we make our politicians go through extra voter notification and approval, and have a 2/3 majority vote for any fee increase.

Referendum 67
Should we make it illegal for insurance companies to unreasonably deny certain claims (this does not include health insurance).

Don’t be fooled into thinking that other lower-profile initiatives and elected positions which haven’t had the same amount of advertising are less important. Your day to day lives are probably more impacted the lesser local officials than, say, the President of the United States. Which, by the way, we will begin electing when we have the Washington State Presidential Primary on February 19th, 2008.

See chinook, sockeye and coho salmon returning to spawn, and learn about their epic journey, with Friends of the Cedar River Watershed at the Renton Library, weekends through Nov. 3.

Hours: 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday and Oct. 27-28, Nov. 3.
Cost: Free

Yet another free Halloween themed activity for your family. But bring your money if you want professional photos or concessions. Take a hayride through Puyallup’s Wildwood Park.

Hours of 7-11PM
Thursday 10/18 through Saturday 10/20

Valley Medical Center will have a seminar led by Dr Jason Thompons on medical treatments for back pain. 6-7 PM Tuesday 10/16 at the Medical Arts Center on the VMC Campus.

The Kent Parks and Recreation Department, et al, is sponsoring a Halloween Party at the Kent Commons on Saturday October 27th from 3:00-6:00 PM.

The party will host a haunting array of hands-on activities:
* Pumpkin Head Decorating
* Ghoulfish Pond Fishing
* Horrifying Hole-In-One Golf
* Frightening Face Painting
* “Squeal of Fortune” Carnival Game
* Scary Ghost Project
* and lots more

The cost for this one is $5. Kids under two are free, and if they mean what they wrote then adults are free also. I’m not sure if that is what they meant to say, or where they draw the line on that one. Humor and entertainment will be provided at 4:30 by Bob Bailey III.

Get in the Halloween spirit by hearing and/or telling funny and/or scary stories, and enjoying free pizza and pop. At the Fairwood library Tuesday October 30, 7PM.

Sign up in the library in person or by phone (425.226.0522) beginning October 16.

Saturday evening at Game Farm Wilderness Park, you and your kids and check out “S’more Than You Imagined”. There will be a giant bonfire, big band music, s’mores and scary stories in the dark. Free glow necklaces for the first 100 kids.

That’s Saturday October 6th from 6-8PM. For more information call 253-931-3043 or visit www.auburnwa.gov