Beware the Bieber Fever — it’s contagious

My daughter Stephanie is about to turn 9 in a few months, so I — like most parents — have been worried about those childhood diseases that seem to find their way into the helpless bodies of most kids her age.

Luckily, so far, she has yet to grab any of the famed illnesses.

Chicken Pox? I’m sure it’s right around the corner. Measles? Not yet … and I’m keeping my fingers crossed. Mumps? Do kids still get this disease?

But we haven’t dodged every bullet. Unfortunately, my daughter has come down with a bad case of Bieber Fever.

If you don’t recognize this paralyzing disease, consider yourself lucky (and you probably are the proud parents of a male child). Bieber Fever is the term — surely made famous by Tiger Beat...

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Bennett family wraps up Disney vacation at Magic Kingdom

This is the final part in a six-part blog series detailing the Bennetts’ biennial trip to Disney World in Orlando. I’ve spent one blog entry on each of the four Disney parks, and two more on the two Universal Studios parks we visited before we hit Lake Buena Vista.

We hit the Universal Studios theme parks to begin our vacation, then hoofed it around Animal Kingdom, EPCOT and Hollywood Studios. We finished with one of the most visited theme parks in the world, Magic Kingdom.

Dad’s pick

SpectroMagic. If you’re a fan of parades, then this could also be one of your favorites. The SpectroMagic parade is different than the many other parades Disney puts on in that it takes place after dark.

The...

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Bennett family enjoys American Idol Experience at Hollywood Studios

This is the fifth in a six-part blog series detailing the Bennetts’ biennial trip to Disney World in Orlando. I’ll spend one blog entry on each of the four Disney parks, and two more on the two Universal Studios parks we visited before we hit Lake Buena Vista.

We hit the Universal Studios theme parks to begin our vacation, then hoofed it around Animal Kingdom and EPCOT. Next up was Hollywood Studios.

Dad’s pick

The American Idol Experience. I won’t say I’m a closet American Idol fan, mainly because I tell anyone who’ll listen how much I enjoy the show. I don’t fit the teeny-bopper demographic that the show tries to hit, but I fit right in at the live new show at Hollywood...

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Bennett family finds lots to do but too much to eat in one day at Epcot

This is the fourth in a six-part blog series detailing the Bennetts’ biennial trip to Disney World in Orlando. I’ll spend one blog entry on each of the four Disney parks, and two more on the two Universal Studios parks we visited before we hit Lake Buena Vista.

We hit the Universal Studios theme parks to begin our vacation, then hoofed it around Animal Kingdom. Next up was Epcot, which stands for Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, a theme park split between Future World — where kids will have the most fun — and World Showcase — a group of miniaturized versions of countries all over the globe.

Dad’s pick

San Angel Inn. I have to start right off by mixing up the theme of these blogs, and...

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Plenty of photo ops as Bennett family visits Disney’s Animal Kingdom

This is the third in a six-part blog series detailing the Bennetts’ biennial trip to Disney World in Orlando. I’ll spend one blog entry on each of the four Disney parks, and two more on the two Universal Studios parks we visited before we hit Lake Buena Vista.

We hit the Universal Studios theme parks to begin our vacation, then it was on to Disney’s Animal Kingdom, one of the most picturesque (and toughest to walk) theme parks in Orlando.

Dad’s pick

Finding Nemo, the Musical. It’s no secret that I love attending Broadway shows, and I particularly love Disney-based shows because I can share my love of the theater with my children. My lone actual Broadway show — meaning right in the theater district of New...

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Bennett family finds Universal Studios a good mix of rides and shows

This is the second in a six-part blog series detailing the Bennetts’ biennial trip to Disney World in Orlando. I’ll spend one blog entry on each of the four Disney parks, and two more on the two Universal Studios parks we visited before we hit Lake Buena Vista.

After going to Islands of Adventure on Day 1, we followed up with Universal Studios.

Dad’s pick

Universal Horror Make-Up Show. Unless you hit the comedy improv show at Pleasure Island in Downtown Disney, there isn’t a lot of adult-driven shows during a typical Disney trip. The horror makeup show is probably not recommended for younger kids, as it explains some of the gorier moments in filmmaking history and has a few of those off-color moments — such as...

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Bennett family finds lots of favorites at Universal Studios’ Islands of Adventure

This will be the first in a six-part blog series detailing the Bennetts’ biennial trip to Disney World in Orlando. I’ll spend one blog entry on each of the four Disney parks, and two more on the two Universal Studios parks we visited before we hit Lake Buena Vista.

We’ll begin with Universal Studios’ Islands of Adventure.

Dad’s pick

The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man. Easy pick for me, as I’ve been a comic book fanatic for the bulk of my life. I have the Amazing Spider-Man #14 — the first appearance of the Green Goblin — locked up in a safe, and I have the Joker — my favorite character — forever etched onto my left shoulder.

So a comic book-themed 3-D ride? You better believe this one...

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A neat family trip … this time, close to home

My daughter Stephanie finally got her dream vacation this month. No, not Disney World. We do that every two years. No, not historical venues like Philadelphia and Washington D.C. She’s been to them all. Not even a geographical wonder like Niagara Falls – she’s been there three times – was a top priority for Stephanie when it came to her getaway wish list. No, my daughter wanted to pack up the car and travel the whole 40 minutes to the Kalahari resort in Sandusky.

It started four years ago – Stephanie is now 7 – when we received a Kalahari vacation-planning DVD in the mail. Whether I sent away for it or the resort somehow knew a demographic sucker when it saw one is still up for debate, but my daughter wore the silver off that disc. She watched...

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Guilt: It’s a wonderful thing

I’ve never strayed during any of the relationships in my life, not even the “puppy love” ones throughout high school. Yet, I’ve got a strong understanding of the importance of the “guilt” gift men buy when they’ve hurt the special ladies in their life.

My job as a sportswriter often puts me out on the road. Sometimes it’s just a day trip to Detroit to see LeBron James drop 25 straight points on the Pistons in a double-overtime win.

Then there was the time that I was gone every weekend for a month and broke my 5-year-old daughter’s heart.

It started with my annual trip to Columbus to cover the high school state wrestling tournament, which normally takes place during...

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The magic of the theater

I can’t imagine the looks on the faces of Peter, John and James as they watched Jesus Christ’s ascension into Heaven, but the one exhibited by my daughter Stephanie when she witnessed the event was absolutely priceless.

I took Stephanie to the stage performance of “Jesus Christ Superstar” for the third time Wednesday night. The first time was by a regional group at the Lorain Palace Theater, and the second time she was asleep midway through the second act.

So though her eyes were about as wide as I thought was humanly possible and her mouth could have held about five or six dozen flies it was so wide open as she watched Ted Neely, reprising the role he made famous in the 1973 film, gasp for breath as he...

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