It’s no surprise that, in a recession, more young adults would opt to share a home with their parents. What is a surprise is this week’s news from the Census Bureau that a full 19 percent – or nearly one in five – men between the ages of 25 and 34 report living at home with their parents.

Back in 2005, pre-recession, the number was 14 percent.

But get this: That’s still higher than the current number of young WOMEN living at home. In 2005 that number was 8 percent, and now, it’s 10 percent.

So why do nearly twice as many young men cohabitate with their parents as young women? Well, the Census Bureau doesn’t get into that.  It does, however, note that the recession isn’t the only reason for the increase.

“The increase in 25 to 34 year olds living in their parents’ home began before the recent recession, and has continued beyond it,” said Rose Kreider, a family demographer with the Fertility and Family Statistics Branch, and author of the new Census Bureau study (which can be found by clicking here: America’s Families and Living Arrangements: 2011).

As for the younger crowd, more than half of those between the ages of 18 and 24 are currently living with their parents: 59 percent of men and 50 percent of women. This, too, is an increase since 2005 – but these numbers also include all the nation’s college students who are currently living in dorms.

There’s lots more statistical information to be gleaned from the study, such as the number of children 18 and YOUNGER living with two parents (remember, this is this year, 2011, we’re talking about), and that sort of thing. But you’ll have to read the study for yourself if you want a more exhaustive analysis.

I’ll leave you with one interesting item, though: In 2011, there are 74.6 million children in the United States under the age of 18. That’s a lot of young-uns, isn’t it?

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With Halloween just a few days away, let’s turn our attention to Christmas.

No, for real.

The kind folks with the Hellgate Elementary PTA sent me a note about their upcoming craft fair and asked if Missoula Mom could help spread the word that they are accepting registrations for craft vendors.

The craft fair will take place on Saturday, Dec. 3, so there’s still plenty of time for vendors to get ready – but they shouldn’t wait to turn in their registrations. It costs $30 per 8-foot by 8-foot booth, tables are $8 each, and each vendor will be required to offer up one $10 item for raffle.

The raffle items will be collected into baskets to help raise money for needy Hellgate families, to help them make ends meet over the holidays.

The fair will open in Hellgate’s Middle School Gym and Commons Area (Building 3) at 2385 Flynn Lane in Missoula. The sale will start at 9 a.m. and continue through 3 p.m., so vendors should expect to start setting up at 8 a.m. and stay for the duration.

Vendor registration forms are available by contacting Theresa Tanner at theresa.tanner@gmail.com or 406-529-8579.

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My daughter likes to reach for the impossible. For her birthday recently, she asked for a swimming suit “with a real mermaid tail.” Uh huh. I’m still working on that one. Maybe I’ll have something figured out in time for Christmas.

In the meantime, Halloween is coming up and that means it’s time for costumes and parties. Wanna-be mermaids in particular won’t want to miss the upcoming “Splash-O-Ween” party at Currents – which will include a costume contest and other fun activities in addition to open swim.

It’s this Friday (!), Oct. 28, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The admission cost is $3 for all ages, with a dollar from each admission going to Share The Fun Youth Recreation Grants.

So support a good cause while also enjoying the company of Currents mascot Oscar the Otter (who will pull double duty as the costume contest judge), as well as a “Mad Scientist’s Lab” display, a greased pumpkin contest, musical inner tubes and a pumpkin relay.

Word is that the Crazy Creek Cafe from Splash Montana will also offer concessions for purchase.

For more information about the city’s aquatics programs or the “Splash-o-Ween” party, call 721-PARK.

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OK, this may just be the coolest thing ever. Anna Rummel Tennenbaum, a toy maker, is offering a Woodland Fairy and Elf Costume Workshop through the Montana Natural History Center.

Get this: The workshop will teach kids and adults how to make their own “crowns, tiaras and accessories using natural materials found in the garden.” Maybe it’s just me, but that sounds awesome.

The cost is $5 to cover supplies, and child participants should probably be at least 8 years old. For more information call the history center at 327-0405.

You’ll want to sign up soon – Registration for the Thursday, Oct. 20 workshop closes at 5 p.m. this Monday, Oct. 17. The two-hour workshop will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the Fort Missoula Native Plant Garden.

If you miss that one, though, there’s another fun activity coming up courtesy of the history center. On Oct. 29, from 2-3 p.m., the center will host a “Spiders” Saturday kids activity with the help of Animal Wonders.

Be forewarned: the activity includes live spiders. Kids ages 5 and older are welcome, and welcome to come in costume. The cost for this one is $5 too.

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I’ve taken several running starts at trying to list all the Halloween events for children in Missoula this year, and so far haven’t been able to clear the hurdle.

There is just too much going on. Where do I even start?

One of my favorites is the annual Halloween Bash at the Families First Children’s Museum. It doubles as a fundraiser for the museum, and it’s now heading into its ninth year.

For only 5 bucks a person, kids and their families can enjoy five hours of Halloween-themed activities. This year’s bash will take place on Sunday, Oct. 30, from noon to 5 p.m.

Here’s an idea of what to expect: A ghouly ghost craft project, spooky story time with musicial guests “The Unknowns,” a creepy crawly show provided by Animal Wonders, a dissection demonstration by SpectrUM, freaky fishing, mummy mountain slide, a treasure dig, and of course games and a glow-in-the-dark dance room. And more.

Kids are encouraged to come in costume.

For more information about the bash or the Families First Children’s Museum, call 541-PLAY, email info@FamiliesFirstMontana.org, or come on down to the museum at 225 W. Front Street.

And for more information about local Halloween events, well, I’ll do my best to post them as I find out about them. But don’t wait on me! If you know about a particularly cool and kid-friendly Halloween party, go ahead and drop me a note or tell readers about it yourself in the comments.

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In today’s Missoulian, K-12 education reporter Jamie Kelly takes us all the way back to the baby boomer generation and explains how the “echoes” of that generation have affected local school enrollment.

To wit: Missoula County Public Schools enrollment has been on the decline for the past seven years. But not this year.

MCPS this year saw a big increase in kindergarten enrollment. The 660 kids it took in is about 120 more than its 10-year average.

These kindergartners are among the 8,555 students currently attending school in Missoula, up from 8,381 last year.

So if you have a kiddo in school, and it seems like there are more kids in your kid’s school, now you know why.

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You know those “Swagger Wagon” ads for Toyota? Or those commercials for Volkswagen with the little kid in Darth Vader gear? Both are considered marketing hits – largely because they strike the right tone with a certain segment of the American population that has a lot of buying clout: moms.

I’m fascinated by marketing that tries to convince me to buy stuff, perhaps because I’m such a tightwad with my money (and by “my” money, I mean the money that my husband earns too). Or perhaps it’s because ad agency’s attempts to capture “a portion of the market representing $2.3 trillion in spending power” are so often so off-base.

That’s a problem tackled earlier this week at the first-ever Advertising Week event reported in this MediaPostNews Marketing Daily article. According to those who spoke at the event, one of the main reasons these agencies struggle to reach moms is because so few moms work in ad agencies.

Another reason: moms are increasingly moving away from traditional advertising vehicles (think TV) and toward other forms of communication (think blogs, Facebook and Twitter).

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I love when local moms write to the newspaper to talk about topics of direct interest to us. Today’s Opinion pages have a letter from a Missoula grandparent concerned about bullying in schools.

We always think this kind of thing happens to someone else’s kid. Maybe we even have personal prejudices about the “type” of kid this happens to be or the kind of family he or the bully came from. I am telling you, it could happen to your beloved child.

The letter encourages parents to research laws and policies regarding bullying.

And yesterday’s Opinion page brought us a letter from a Missoula mom who decried the common practice of including formula in hospital’s take-home bags for newborns.

Hospitals giving away free formula definitely undermines a new mom’s determination to breast-feed. It’s hard enough to nurse your baby, it’s even harder when it’s 2 a.m. and the formula is so close by. I wish I had never had formula in my house.

Were I to write my own letter today, it would would be one advocating a playground on every block – a swing for every child! Case in point is today’s Hall Passages in which the folks at Lewis and Clark Elementary talk about the marked decrease in students’ behavior problems, thanks to the schools’ new playground.

Plus, as this photo demonstrates, play structures can pull double duty as public art.

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Here’s the latest parenting tip from the Healthy Start Council’s Susan Barmeyer. These are put together using funding from the Montana Children’s Trust Fund Board and the Parental Information & Resource Center Program of the Office of Innovation and Improvement at the U.S. Department of Education.

Learning on the Go:

Active Fun

Sometimes it seems as though the easiest way to keep kids occupied is to turn on the TV.  But children log a staggering 28-32 hours every day in front of some sort of screen.  With obesity on the rise in the early years, children need to be more active.  Here are a couple of ideas to promote active fun at your house:

• Make a tub of active toys that are appropriate for your children’s age that they can access at any time.  It could include balls of all varieties, Frisbees, hula hoops, jump ropes, sidewalk chalk, paintbrushes (for painting with water), etc.

• Teach your children outdoor activities, such as hide and seek, obstacle courses, hopscotch, leap frog, and follow the leader.

• Plan a scavenger hunt by making a list of things for your children to find outside:  a rock, twig, clover leaf, pine cone, etc.  For the littlest ones, you can draw pictures.  You can also hide a few small treasures as well, such as marbles, old keys, or polished rocks.

Your children will have so much fun they won’t even miss the TV.  And there is one more reason to give your children lots of opportunities to be active – it helps their brains!

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The Run Wild Missoula Running Clinic for Women is not just for moms, but sure sounds mom-friendly. Its invitation even includes a special mention that the clinic takes place during “mom hours” – 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., on Friday, Sept. 23.

Here’s the invite:

Are work, family and life responsibilities cutting into your running or walking time? Do you need a day of running, relaxation and friends? Renew your running and renew yourself at the Run Wild Missoula Running Clinic for Women. The day (during “mom” hours) includes lunch, a group run in Blue Mountain Wilderness Area, running clinic led by Olympian Courtney Babcock and use of PEAK Health & Wellness, including sauna, hot tub, pool, indoor track and exercise machines. Optional spa services such as massages, pedicures, manicures and facials will also available.

The cost for the Friday clinic only at PEAK Health & Wellness Center is $60.

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