Your Coolest Thrills

Previously, the only way to access resources at the American Automobile Association's website (aaa.com) was to enter an account number; this annoyed members, who rarely had the number handy, as well as nonmembers, who were excluded. But AAA recently dropped the restriction. Now anyone can look up its tens of thousands of restaurant and hotel listings. It also provides driving directions and helpful traffic info about construction and road closures, and you can customize maps to incorporate up to 20 stops or to avoid tolls. Why bother with membership at all? It's the only way to get AAA hotel discounts and roadside assistance.

Some museums know that filling halls with dinosaurs isn't the only way to get youngsters interested. Across the country, fine-art institutions host programs that make boring exhibits approachable--and even cool. In Cincinnati, the Taft Museum of Art's self-guided family tours present works of art in cool ways: The Witches and Wizards tour, for example, points out mythological figures that are similar to Harry Potter characters (513/241-0343, taftmuseum.org, $7, free under 19). The Denver Art Museum's Just for Fun Family Center welcomes kids to try Japanese memory games, mix and match clothing to create interesting designs, and play with a puzzle inspired by a New Guinea sculpture (720/865-5000, denverartmuseum.org, $13 adults, $5 kids). Los Angeles's J. Paul Getty Museum hands out Art Detective Cards with instructions in English and Spanish for sleuthing out surprises--like the feather and leaf fossils in a block of travertine marble in the garden (310/440-7300, getty.edu, free). A couple interesting programs require a little coordinating and advance planning. The Salvador Dalí Museum, in St. Petersburg, Fla., hosts Monthly Breakfasts with Dalí, in which 5- to 12-year-old kids take guided tours of paintings specially selected to appeal to them. A guide might explain, for instance, how Dalí purposely spilled coffee and eggs on his shirt just to see the resulting designs. Kids also create souvenirs such as cutouts of Dalí's stilt-legged elephants with glued-on pipe-cleaner legs (727/823-3767, salvadordalimuseum.org, $20 for one adult and one child). New York City's Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, meanwhile, offers private 90-minute family tours that cater to 5- to 10-year-olds and include time for sketching and making collages inspired by what they've seen. (212/423-3500, guggenheim.org, $15 per family). Related Stories: Plan a "Night at the Museum" Splurges: Spoil the Kids a Little

BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENTS RED RIVER HOGS: Born March 27, 2007These yet-to-be-named newborn triplets are nursing and keeping their first-time mother very busy. Red river hogs are native to the forests of western and central Africa and, like most swine, they have a keen sense of smell and use their snouts to dig for roots and tubers. These piglets have another use for snouts; they butt them together when wrestling each other.Who Knew? Also called bush pigs, the animals are primarily active at night and tend to hide in bushes by day--their stripes help them blend in with the surroundings. ELEPHANT: Born March 11, 2007African elephant Litsemba, which means "the timid one" in SiSwati, gave birth to a male calf in the zoo's Wild Animal Park. Litsemba is one of seven African elephants rescued in August 2003. She was living in a national park in Swaziland, where limited space and droughts threatened the elephants' survival. The zoo hosts elephant shows daily at 1 P.M. and 3 P.M., and has an elephant webcam.Who Knew? African elephants are much bigger than their Asian cousins, and Litsemba's baby can be expected to reach an adult weight of 7 to 8 tons. SUN BEAR: Born September 23, 2006Bulan is one of just two Bornean sun bears born in the U.S. (both at the San Diego Zoo). The littlest of the eight bear species, sun bears have distinctive yellowish marks--suggesting a glowing sun--on their chests.Who Knew? In Malay, the tree-dwelling bears are called basindo nan tenggil ("he who likes to sit high"). The zoo has more fun facts and a video clip on its website. OKAPI: Born September 21, 2006Rarely seen in zoos, okapis have striped zebra-like legs yet velvety brown upper bodies. They're native only to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where they're threatened by deforestation, fighting, and hunting. More than 30 okapis, including this newcomer named Akin Ali, have been delivered at San Diego's Wild Animal Park, which boasts the highest birth rate outside of Africa. Who Knew? Okapis have long tongues like giraffes, their relatives, and use them to clean their eyes and ears. EXPECTING ELEPHANTS: Two African elephants, Umoya and Lungile, are pregnant. The typical gestation term is about 21 months, and the zoo expects them give birth later this year (one in May or June and the other at the end of 2007). DETAILS San Diego Zoo, located within Balboa Park, 2920 Zoo Dr., sandiegozoo.org, 619/231-1515, $34, ages 3-11 $24, children under 3 free. Note that the Wild Animal Park is located off-site in the San Pasqual Valley near Escondido, Calif. A two-park ticket is $60 for adults and $43 for children.

BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENTS GOAT: Born April 1, 2007The brown-and-white newborn named Jasper has been keeping close to his mother, a Nigerian dwarf goat. These herd animals are known for being gentle and small; fully-grown does are only about 16-21 inches tall.Who Knew? Both male and female goats have horns as well as beard-like tufts of hair, called wattles, under their chins. TOADS: Born March 17, 2007A Texas native, the small Houston toad has been dying out rapidly over the past 30 years. Dr. Michael Forstner and students at Texas State University in San Marcos--near the toads' single remaining habitat--recovered some toad-egg strands and brought them to the Houston Zoo. The eggs hatched, and the zoo hopes to breed the toads in capitivity and then release them back into the wild.Who Knew? Houston toads live primarily on land, burrowing into the sand to protect themselves against cold winter weather. ANTELOPE: Born March 8, 2007The 71-pound female calf, who was able to stand up just 15 minutes after birth, is the first giant eland delivered at the Houston Zoo. Elands are one of Africa's most endangered mammals and the largest type of antelope. This baby's mother, Dorothy, weighs 737 pounds at the ripe old age of four.Who Knew? Male antelopes have beautiful twisted horns measuring up to 50 inches and permanently attached (unlike deers antlers, which are shed annually). ELEPHANT: Born October 1, 2006Baby Asian elephant Mac loves splashing around in his pool. He lives with his mother, 15-year-old Shanti, in the elephant exhibit, which the zoo plans to expand to more than three acres over the next few years.Who Knew? Mac's first set of four inside teeth came in at the end of January. In a lifetime, elephants typically go through six sets of teeth. DETAILS Houston Zoo, 1513 N. MacGregor Dr., 713/533-6500, houstonzoo.org, $10, seniors $5.75, ages 2-11 $5, children under 2 free.