Papa's Notes - Astronomy
As the bizarre combination of ennui, cabin fever, and summer-break doldrums began to grip the grand's and my daughter and son-in-laws household (not too mention Nana & Papa's homesick and heartsick feelings over not being able to see and wrap arms about our grands), we begin casting about for something to send the grandkids to delight and engage them, and hopefully to delight them, and perhaps give their mom and dad a break as well.
Hearkening back to my own childhood, I remembered my own sense of wonder, and intermittent and periodic fits of fascination with Astronomy and Telescopy. A quick visit to Amazon.com had my mind made up, and Nana was just as enthusiastic: the Grand Adventures site needed to add a unit on Astronomy (I'd later discover that this really is a "thing" in the Easter Sierra Nevada, which offers some amazing locations and excellent conditions for stargazing), and the grands "needed" a telescope.
The Amazon.com shopping site had lots of great products and information and reviews to aid in the selection of a "beginner's" telescope, and the "people who bought this also bought that" feature suggested a couple of really fun and excellent "how-to"/"beginner books for kids" books. On a lark, Nana and I hit the "buy now" button, and the results have been really great, so we thought we'd share about what we sent to the grands:
