Tadpoles, for children ages 2 to 5, meets at 10 a.m. tomorrow at The Nature Center in Oakwoods Metropark. This month's theme is "Summer Stuff." There is a $4 fee per child.
Meanwhile, Nature NUTS, for children ages 6 to 10, meets at the same time at the Nature Center. This month's theme is "Like totally trees, dude." There is a $4 fee per child.
The Early Bird Gang flies again at 10 a.m. Aug. 11. Enjoy some early morning bird watching.
Advance registration is required. Call 1-734-782-3956.
The Crack O' Dawn Coffee Club meets at 7 a.m. tomorrow for caffeine and an outdoor stroll at the Marshlands Museum and Nature Center at Lake Erie Metropark. Donations will be accepted.
The Muskrat Club, for kindergartners through third-graders, meets at 10:30 a.m. tomorrow. Learn about the summer activities of prehistoric Native Americans. There is a $2 fee per child.
Go on a Sunset Stroll at 6:30 p.m. Aug. 11. Join an interpreter and enjoy nature at the end of the day. There is a $2 fee.
Learn to draw nature at Sketchpad Pals from 10 a.m. to noon Aug. 14-16. The class is for children ages 5 to 12. Bring a No. 2 pencil and a sketchpad.
Advance registration is required for all programs. Call 1-800-477-3189 or 1-734-379-5020 for registration and information.
Kids, give the video games a break and get outside during "Fishing Fun," a day camp from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through next Friday at Oakwoods Metropark.
Children ages 8 to 13 can learn about the ecosystem, how to identify fish and go fishing.
Participants will have to bring their lunches each day.
The cost is $75 for one child, $60 for each additional child from the same family. Advance registration is required. For information or to register, call 1-734-782-3956.
The Dearborn Homecoming festival takes place in Ford Field Park from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. today through Sunday.
Highlights include fireworks at dusk tomorrow and Sunday; live entertainment throughout the festival, featuring K.C. & The Sunshine Band tomorrow, the "Cruisin' Dearborn" classic car cruise and show today, many children's activities, a free fishing derby, the "Nickelodeon Live!" show, "Living History Hill" and more.
For a complete schedule and other details, visit www.cityofdearborn.org or call 1-313-943-2285.
See America's favorite pastime as it was originally played when Greenfield Village presents the Fifth Annual World Tournament of Historic Base Ball, today through Sunday.
At noon tomorrow, meet Detroit Tigers pitcher and Michigan native Jason Grilli at the Village Pavilion.
Don't miss the legendary sportscaster and former voice of the Detroit Tigers Ernie Harwell as he calls parts of the historic baseball games at 3:30 p.m. tomorrow and at 1 p.m. Sunday in Walnut Grove.
Throughout the weekend, hear the sounds of 19th-century music played by the Dodworth Saxhorn Band and other musical performers.
Cap off tomorrow with an amazing fireworks finale and concert by the Dodworth Saxhorn Band in Walnut Grove, just before 9 p.m.
The tournament is free with membership or admission to Greenfield Village. Tickets are $20 adults, $19 seniors (ages 62 and up), $14 youth (ages 5-12) and free for children under 5.
Tan those calves, men. It's kilt-wearing time as the St. Andrew's Society of Detroit presents the 158th Highland Games today and tomorrow 4 at Historic Greenmead Park in Livonia.
The events include a ceilidh, a music and dancing party from 5:30 to 11 p.m. today. Tickets are $15 (children 5 and younger can attend free) and must be purchased in advance.
Tomorrow, the games take place. Heavy games will include the caber toss, the stone put and the 56-pound weight toss for height.
There also will be bagpipe competitions, drum and drum major competitions, Highland dance competitions, a parade of clans, a display of animals native to Scotland, two entertainment tents, Wee Bairns games for children, genealogy and clan tents, Celtic crafts and that world-renowned Scottish cuisine.
Tickets for tomorrow are $10 in advance, $15 at the gate. Children 12 and younger get in free. For tickets, visit www.highlandgames.com.
Get out the special occasion bib, the Ribs 'n' Soul Festival is today through Sunday in Hart Plaza in downtown Detroit.
Ribbers will be saucing up their best ribs, chicken and other dishes for popular approval and in competition for prizes for the top ribs and sauce.
Artists from around the country will be showcasing and selling their work. There will be a classic car show, a business expo and the "Food for the Soul Gospel Showcase."
Members of the Taylor Police Department and Taylor Firefighters Local 1252 will take the field in a softball game next Friday benefiting the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
The competition will begin with a home run derby at 6 p.m., followed by a nine-inning game at 7:30 p.m. at Rotary Park, located behind the Michigan State Police Post, 12111 Telegraph Road.
Tickets, $5, are on sale at the Taylor Police Department any time, and at the Midtown Taylor Fire Station from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Both are located on Goddard Road east of Telegraph Road.
The fourth annual Downtown Monroe Fine Art Fair is taking place from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Aug. 11 and noon - 6 p.m. Aug. 12 in Loranger Square, at Washington and First Street.
Over 40 artists from around the Midwest will be selling sculptures, photography, jewelry, pottery, glass, wood, fiber art and paintings.
The event is running adjacent and simultaneous to the River Raisin Jazz Festival. Free shuttles will be offered to transport people between parking lots (parking also is free), the art fair and the jazz festival at St. Mary's Park.
Waddle to Lake Erie Metropark for the Wood Duck Dash 5- and 10K runs. The starting gun goes off at 9 a.m. Aug. 18.
Registration is required. The entry fee is $12 until next Friday, $15 after. Registration the day of the event will take place from 8 to 8:45 a.m.
Awards will be given in eight age categories and overall winners.
Register in person or by calling 1-734-397-5020 or 1-800-477-3189. Request an entry form by e-mail at Kelly.turner@metroparks. com.
Biker Bob's Motown Chilifest Car and Bike Show is from noon to 5 p.m. Thursday at Biker Bob's Harley-Davidson Motown, 14100 S. Telegraph, Taylor.
Chili contest registration begins at 11 a.m. Sampling is at 3 p.m.
There will be door prizes, raffles, music and more. The event, a state championship cook-off, is a fund-raiser for Taylor-based Penrickton Center for Blind Children.
Show off your dream machine. Registration is $10 for cars or bikes. Call 1-734-947-4647 or go to www.bikerbobsHD.com for more information.
This summer, take a ride on the wild side at the Henry Ford Museum and find out what truly drives rock stars with the hot new exhibit "Rock Stars' Cars & Guitars" through Sept. 30.
See John Lennon's "psychedelic" Rolls Royce, a sports car owned (and shot) by Elvis Presley; the actual "Little Deuce Coupe" of Beach Boys fame; a "Dukes of Hazard" 1969 Dodge Charger, owned by Kid Rock; a 1969 GT 350 Shelby Mustang, owned by Bob Seger; and many more rock star vehicles, along with more than 30 guitars owned by some of the most legendary performers to pick up a pick.
The exhibit is free with regular museum admission. Henry Ford Museum is open 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week. Admission is $14 for adults, $13 for seniors and $10 for youths. Members and children 4 and younger are free. For more information, call 1-313-982-6001 or visit www.TheHenryFord.org.
"Our Body: The Universe Within," an eye-opening and educational exhibition of actual human bodies and organs, is making its Midwest debut at the New Detroit Science Center, 5020 John R St.
Including approximately 20 bodies and 135 other anatomical displays, the exhibit exposes the inner workings of human anatomy by presenting actual human specimens, reproductions of historic anatomical artwork and much more.
In an artful, compelling and dignified environment, guests will be able to connect with the human artifacts on a personal level that will help them to better understand their own bodies.
The exhibition has been held over through Sept. 3. Tickets are $24.95 for adults, $22.95 for seniors and $19.95 for children. The cost includes Science Center general admission. Children ages 12 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.
Visitors can add the IMAX Dome Theatre film "The Human Body" for an additional $3 for adults and $2 for children and seniors with the purchase of a ticket to "Our Body: The Universe Within." Advance tickets are available at www.detroitsciencecenter.org.
Bacon Memorial District Library, 45 Vinewood, Wyandotte, hosts a drop-in chess game night from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursdays.
Find new and challenging opponents and pick up a move or two.
Heritage Decorative Artists of Southeast Michigan, a chapter of the International Society of Decorative Painters, meets bimonthly at the Westfield Activities Center, 2700 Westfield Road, Trenton.
The group shares ideas and new painting techniques in addition to sponsoring painting seminars with well-known teachers. All levels of painters are welcome.
For more information, call Debi Keeling at 1-734-422-9382, or visit www.heritagedecorativeartists.com.
The Downriver Council for the Arts, 20904 North Line Road, Taylor, has a book club, which meets from 1 to 3 p.m. the first Thursday of every month.
Snacks are provided, and donations are accepted. To learn more, call 1-734-287-6103 or e-mail dc4arts@cs-net.net.
Preservation Wayne again is offering walking tours through five historic districts of Detroit.
The tours take place at 10 a.m. Saturdays. Tours include downtown, the Eastern Market, midtown, auto heritage and the Cultural Center. Tours of the New Center are available by appointment.
Each tour costs $10 and takes two to three hours, looking at the area's past and present.
There also are Tuesday After Work Walking Tours at 5:30 p.m. starting from the Hotel Pontchartrain, 2 Washington Blvd. Each focuses on a different aspect of downtown — skyscrapers, restaurants and bars, sculptures and fountains or the buildings of Albert Kahn and Louis Kemper.
The evening tours also are $10 and take about two hours.
For more information, call 1-313-577-3559 or visit www.preservationwayne.org
See the birthplace of the Model T with a tour of the historic Ford Piquette Avenue Plant, 461 Piquette, Detroit.
Walk the same floors as Henry Ford, the Dodge brothers, James Couzens and other auto pioneers, where the first 10,000 Tin Lizzies were manufactured before the advent of the assembly line.
A National Historic Landmark, the Ford Piquette Avenue plant is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. the first and third Saturdays of every month through October. Admission is $10, with free admission for ages 16 and younger.
Tours for groups of 10 or more are available by appointment. Call 1-313-868-2377 for reservations. For directions, visit www.tplex.org.
Take a tour of the Henry Ford Estate-Fair Lane on the campus of the University ofMichigan-Dearborn, 4901 Evergreen Road.
Tours are at 10:30 and 11:30 a.m. Mondays through Saturdays.
The price is $10 for adults, $9 for seniors (62 and older) and $6 for children ages 5-12. Children 4 and younger get in free.
Call 1-313-593-5590 for details.
The Edsel & Eleanor Ford House, 1100 Lake Shore Road, Grosse Pointe Shores, has several Behind the Scenes and Specialty Tours slated for summer.
Tours include:
l"Staff Life on the Estate," at 11 a.m. next Friday and 7 p.m. Aug. 22. Guests will have the opportunity to explore the spaces where staff lived and worked while hearing about the large loyal staff that helped make the estate a home for the Ford family.
l "The Secrets Behind the Paintings" at 11 a.m. Aug. 17 and 7 p.m. Wednesday. Delve into the secret stories behind the great art at the Ford home and the individuals who helped the Fords amass their collection, and get a glimpse of paintings in the attic and basement that are not on display.
l"Cotswold Architecture," at 11 a.m. Aug. 24 and at 7 p.m. Tuesday. Study architect Albert Kahn's work and how he merged modern and antique architecture.
l"Garden and Grounds Exploration," at 11 a.m. Aug. 18 and 7 p.m. today.
Guides will lead guests through the immense gardens and grounds of the estate, including areas often not visited, such as "Bird Island."
Behind the Scenes Tours cost $10. An optional general tour of the house's interior can be added for $7. Reservations are required and can be made by calling 1-313-884-4222.
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