LOWER LAKE, Calif. – Lake County Bumps and Babies Fair – the county's first- ever fair all about pregnancy, birth and child care – will take place on Saturday, May 12.

The fair will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Brick Hall in Lower Lake.

Attendance and participation is totally free. Also, the first 100 people in attendance get a goody bag of free stuff and information from our vendors and others who were unable to attend.

There will be speakers every 30 minutes from noon until 4 p.m., talking about everything from midwifery to hospital births, yoga and dental health, and photographing your baby.

The event offers a great way for moms to celebrate Mother's Day, and a great chance for partners to do something nice for the mothers in their life.

There also are chances to win larger prizes as well, just fill out a small "passport" questionnaire and get a chance to win midwifery services, a goody basket from Zoe Organics and more.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The video of a judicial candidates' forum held on Thursday, May 3, is now available online.

The forum can be found at www.velocityvideoonline.com/2012/05/09/lake-county-department-1-judge-candidates-debate/ .

The event – held in Lakeport – featured candidates for the Lake County Superior Court Department 1 bench including Judy Conard, Michael Friel, Susan Krone and Michael Lunas.

The primary is June 5.

The forum was cosponsored by the Lake County Bar Association, Lake County Chamber of Commerce, Lake County News and Velocity Video.

MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – “Hammers for Hope” is a newly formed nonprofit set on helping seniors and low-income families in need of minor home repairs but who lack the financial resources for the work.

On Friday, May 4 Hammers for Hope kicked off its next project in Middletown.

While delivering lunches for the Meals-On-Wheels program, Supervisor Jim Comstock met Margaret Bowlings, a longtime Middletown resident and senior citizen.  

Mrs. Bowlings mentioned that she cuts and hauls wood inside her home for her wood burning stove but could really use handrails to help her get up and down her front porch stairs.

Comstock brought this project to the attention of the Hammers for Hope’s board.

It turned out that Mrs. Bowlings’ porch was very badly dilapidated and needed to be replaced.

Instead of just handrails, Mrs. Bowlings’ now has a new porch with the much needed hand railings.   

The project was headed up by Mike Sand, Coyote Valley Construction and Calpine employees Barbara Ferguson, Dan Ferguson, Tom Stewart, Jill Gibbs and Danielle Matthews Seperas volunteered alongside Sand and his team to get the job done.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Special Districts has implemented a project that includes line cleaning of the sewer collection system lines throughout Lake County.

These activities are part of the agency's Sanitary Sewer Management Plan in accordance with state and federal regulatory agencies.

This is a countywide project that will occur over several years.

Currently, the line cleaning crews will be working in the Clearlake and Lower Lake areas for the next two to three months.

This process involves a high pressure water system to clean the lines.

As water passes through the system pipes, residents may hear a gurgling sound in the sewer pipes of their residence.

On very rare occasions, when a home has minimal ventilation or lies at a lower elevation than the sewer lines, a vacuum effect may occur which can cause water to splash out of a toilet or sink.

If you experience this, please contact Special Districts at 707-263-0119.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – On Sunday, May 20, an annular solar eclipse will be viewable across several U.S. states, the Pacific Ocean, Japan and China.

On June Tuesday, 5, Venus will transit (pass in front of) the Sun.

Join the Taylor Observatory and Norton Planetarium from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, May 19, as Observatory Assistant Edward Giannelli prepares you to safely experience these wonderful events.

Lake County's Window to the Universe is held on the third Saturday of each month.

The evening's event includes a Science Topic presentation, a full dome theater experience and astronomical viewing. Public events are held regardless of weather.

Suggested donation is $3 per person.

For more information visit www.taylorobservatory.org or call 707-262-4121.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – The caregiver support group for families dealing with memory loss or other cognitive impairments will meet on Thursday, May 10.

The group meets at St. John’s Lutheran Church at 14310 Memory lane in Clearlake from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.

The group facilitator is social worker Jenny Johnson.

Respite is provided by the centers at no charge.

The groups are sponsored by Redwood Caregiver Resource Center (1-800-834-1636) and the Social Day Programs in Lake County.

Call Jenny Johnson, 707-350-3030, or Caroline Denny, 707-263-9481, for information.