Find reunion-planning resources on the Web

This is the time of year families, club organizers, former sorority sisters, school alumni leaders, former Peace Corps volunteers and retired military folks are thinking about and planning their summer reunions. Several sites on the Web can help.

Family Reunion.com, http://family-reunion.com, has an icon called Mr. Spiffy who answers questions on all kinds of reunions. For example, regarding how big the planning committee should be, Mr. Spiffy says if it is a family reunion and under 25 people, one person can handle the planning. He has a link to a Family Reunion Checklist so you won't forget anything. If it is larger than that, he suggests you make up a binder with sections for subcommittees, guests, assignments, resources, finances and any other special activity or event. There are many lists on this site that can help you narrow down what to do.

The Reunion Planner, www.reunionplanner.com, has nametags, banners, resort recommendations and other products and services you can buy and call upon in planning your reunion.

Once you get everyone together, what will they do for fun? Go to About.com's genealogy site for good tips, http://genealogy.about.com/od/family_reunions. There is a list by Kimberly Powell of 10 fun family history activities you can do together, such as a photo swap, a family scavenger hunt, a family tree chart, a heritage cookbook or story time.

The site also has links to the online Better Homes and Gardens Family Reunion Center, which has recipes, how-tos, printable invitations and checklists, and a section from Family Fun magazine on family reunions, which covers invitations, planning, location, icebreakers, food, fun reunion games and commemorating the event.

If you are new to day camping and don't know how much to pack, go to World Class Gear.com, www.worldclassgear.com/day_hiking_packing_list.asp. It has a graph for base layer, insulation layer and shell layer, outer clothing and footwear, and it recommends options in each of these categories from many different manufacturers. If you want to check out a particular brand, just click on the link and it will take you to a product review by real campers so you can evaluate what is best for you.

In print

"The Rough Guide to Travel with Babies and Young Children" by Fawn Rasheed de Francisco, is published by Rough Guides at $15.99. There is nothing like hearing about how to do something from people who have been there, done it and are willing to discuss their mistakes as well as their successes.

This book includes both factual information on how to plan ahead for a more stress-free trip with babies or young children, and firsthand accounts from parents who love to travel. It starts will help on how to plan your itinerary, how to choose a child-friendly accommodation and continues with tips on how to make plane and auto travel more manageable for everyone. It discusses different services and cultural attitudes to children in various countries, and gives practical tips on how to pack, how to cope with eating out and how to handle sleep deprivation.

There are also handy checklists, lists of resources, Web sites and further reading.