Ready to step into the spirit of the holidays? Attend opening night festivities of Disney's A Christmas Carol: An IMAX 3D Experience, in downtown Raleigh on Friday, and you'll return to 19th-century England, complete with caroling, confections, cheer and special appearances from characters in Theatre In The Park's A Christmas Carol.

Raleigh’s very own musical comedy adaptation of A Christmas Carol, by Theatre In The Park, has been warming hearts since 1974. Some of the production’s characters will be ushering in the holiday season and movie-goers for the opening night of Disney’s A Christmas Carol: An IMAX 3D Experience at the Wachovia IMAX Theatre at Marbles Kids Museum. Free festivities are open to all from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday. Tickets are required for the film, with shows at 5, 7...

Worried about your family getting the H1N1 flu? Who isn’t? Every day seems to bring changes in which age group is more vulnerable, yet if you’ve called your pediatrician’s office to try to get a shot, you know that the vaccines aren’t coming in fast enough.

We all know that hand washing is our best defense against the flu, but now there’s a plan afoot to tackle the H1N1 pandemic from new angle that makes perfect sense. Under a bill proposed in Congress Tuesday, employers who tell workers to stay home when they are sick will have to give them paid time off for up to five days, Reuters reports. The emergency law would cover the H1N1 flu and other infectious diseases.

Now there’s a real incentive for people to stay home when they’re sick. We’ve all been told to keep our kids home from school when they’re sick and to do the same when we’re ill. The problem is that parents often don’t get paid when they’re...

Got plans to celebrate Halloween with the kids? As the witching hour approaches, the spirit of fun is spreading its wings across the Triangle. If you're looking for age-appropriate entertainment, you'll find a range, from Frightful Haunts (ghostly offerings designed to send you scurrying for your mummy) to Not-So-Scary Events for Little Boys and Ghouls.

On Friday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Kidzu Children’s Museum in Chapel Hill, is featuring a Halloween Spooktacular Event with stories, fun crafts, games and prizes! On Friday and Saturday, enjoy the Polar Ice House's Spooky Skating events.

On Saturday, celebrate a ...

In the mood for Halloween? You’ll find a bunch of spooky and zany events around the Triangle this weekend plus your pick of pumpkin patches, hayrides and haunted houses close to your home.

On Saturday, enjoy a growlingly ghoulish fashion show put on by dogs available for adoption at the SPCA Howl-O-Ween, in Raleigh, from 2 to 5 p.m. Over in Durham on Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., catch “Spooky Saturday” at Museum of Life and Science. You’ll find Joshua Lozoff, former actor for the hit TV series Cheers, performing his strolling magic...

Looking for good after-school programs? You can find them in North Carolina, which recently ranked in the Top 10 in America After 3pm, a survey of after-school programs in all 50 states. But most parents statewide who want their kids in after-school programs aren’t able to find them, usually because programs aren’t available, they can’t afford the fees or transportation issues make it impossible.

Those results come from the landmark America After 3PM study, conducted for the Afterschool Alliance non-profit advocacy organization and sponsored by the JCPenney Afterschool Fund. It is being released this month in conjunction with Lights On Afterschool, a nationwide rally for after-school set for Thursday. For more information or to find a local event,visit www.AfterschoolAlliance.org.

Of the 688 households surveyed in North Carolina, 86 percent of parents were happy with their child’s...