The temperatures are dropping, but there are lots of cool activities going on at the Knoxville Zoo.

Celebrate the cooler weather during the Zoo’s Penguin Discount Days. Penguin Discount Days include half-price admission for all zoo guests through Saturday, February 28, 2009. Make sure you visit the zoo during the winter and check out the animals who keep cool.

For more information about the Knoxville Zoo, visit knoxville-zoo.org

The circus is coming to the Knoxville Coliseum from January 22nd – 25th, 2009. Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey present BOOM A RING, an action-packed circus spectacular where energy bursts out of the ring, into the audience, and bounces back to electrify the Ringling Bros. performers. Circus-goers will enjoy an up-close and personal experience as they sit feet away from beautiful white tigers, majestic Asian elephants, and thrilling acrobats from around the world. The action in Boom A Ring bounces from one high high-energy act to the next, featuring a daring crossbow demonstration that takes archery to new extremes, a gravity-defying performance on the whirling Wheel of Steel, a high wire extravaganza that tests the limits of human balance and breathtaking aerialists gracefully soaring over the audience’s heads. Boom A Ring is a one-of-a-kind experience that engages all of the senses while providing children of all ages with a day at The Greatest Show On Earth they never imagined possible!

Arrive an hour before show time for the All Access Pre-show – FREE to all ticketholders, and meet Ringling Bros. performers and animals, learn circus skills and enjoy a taste of the circus before the show even starts!

Event Info:
Show Time: Jan 25th 5:00 PM
Show Time: Jan 25th 1:00 PM
Show Time: Jan 24th 7:00 PM
Show Time: Jan 24th 3:00 PM
Show Time: Jan 23rd 7:00 PM
Show Time: Jan 22nd 7:00 PM

Ticket Info:
Ticket prices listed above are the per ticket price at the Knoxville Coliseum Box Office. Tickets may be purchased through the web site or at any of the following outlets: Coliseum Box Office, Charge by Phone – Tickets Unlimited (865) 656-4444 or toll free (877) 995-9961.

Knoxville Zoo is lending a hand to Santa this holiday season!

Santa is busy getting ready for the holidays and has asked the Knoxville Zoo to prepare his reindeer for their annual trip on Christmas Eve.

Stop by Knoxville Zoo between now and January 31 to see some of Santa’s favorite reindeer friends.

For directions, times and more info visit www.knoxville-zoo.org

Now you have no excuse for not taking your family to the Knoxville Museum of Art. From now until the end of 2008 the museum will not charge any admission fees. There are multiple exhibits that can help you bring art to your kids.

Currently there is an exhibit about the quilts of Gee’s Bend. They are beautiful tributes to the women who created these masterpeices with a needle and thread. To learn more about upcoming exhibits you can check out the museum’s website.

Just make sure you take advantage of the no admission fee offer. In a time when most of our budgets are feeling crunched this is a great activity to take part in. Combine it with a trip to the Fort Kid playground across from the museum and your family can make a day of it!

Why not celebrate Earth Day a little early this year with the 2008 Run for Clean Air? On April 12th runners and walkers will gather in Sequoyah Hills to raise awareness for clean air work that is going on in our area.

The fifth annual event begins at 9am and you can register on-site before the race begins. There are all kinds of prizes from Dollywood passes to art by Jim Gray.

Get out and celebrate all that East Tennessee has to offer as we work towards preserving it for future generations. It’s a fun event for your whole family and you will even be able to test drive different models of Hybrid cars from several automakers.

www.runforcleanair.org

I believe that Thanksgiving gets the shaft in terms of holiday celebrations. My sister’s house is lit up like a runway before Halloween. I rebel against Christmas music played in Pottery Barn in October, and I refuse to try on that Christmas taffeta party dress at Ann Taylor before Thanksgiving (even though they do have my size, and it is gorgeous)…nope, not gonna do it. I want to celebrate Halloween with all the candy and costumes and Thanksgiving with family and friends. However, I have to share a must-do Christmas holiday event now, because it sells out every year before December.

The Three Rivers Rambler becomes the “Christmas Express” where children of all ages experience the magic of a holiday train ride through Knoxville. During this 90-minute, 11-mile train ride, passengers are served Christmas cookies and refreshments while a local celebrity reads a holiday story. Santa and his elves board the train at the halfway point to talk to the children and give each one a special gift. Visit their website for more information and to book your reservation online. My husband and I have taken our four-year-old daughter for the past three years, so it has become a holiday tradition for our family, and I hope it will become one of yours as well. Now start working on those pilgrim hats.