Beltway Bambinos

(re) discover Washington DC through the eyes of your children

Time-Saving Hack for Busy Parents During the Holidays and Beyond

There’s overwhelming evidence that  the feeling of having enough time is at an all-time low, and the fast-paced, high-pressure DC area is no exception. Add in the holidays, and your schedule is probably feeling like a 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle.

As you all know well, women and moms in particular – often strive to “do it all,” but pay a price in both mental and physical health. If you don’t already know about DC-based business Skip The Line, a woman-owned, modern-day time-saving service, you need to! Skip’s whole mission is to enable people to spend more of life on what they enjoy and less on what they don’t. Started by Jennifer Goff in 2017 as a line-sitting service, Skip expanded into delivery during the pandemic, and has now launched a new personal assistant service, Skip Assist – just in time to help you through the busy holiday season.

Skip The Line is hoping to change the way people view outsourcing everyday tasks – not as a once-in-a-while indulgence, but as a reliable tool for making life more manageable and more enjoyable. As we continue to weather the pandemic and the multi-tasking demands this has placed on parents – and as we enter the busy holiday season and approach the new year – a time management strategy that incorporates outsourcing where possible can be a game changer.

Unlike traditional concierge services that can feel old-fashioned or intimidating, Skip Assist offers modern, approachable assistance with everything from picking up dry cleaning to researching restaurants for a weekend away – all paired with excellent customer service. Through Skip Assist, a member of Skip The Line’s highly-vetted team will run errands like gift shopping and mailing packages; plan and schedule trips; research options for everything from the best local dog groomer to a kitchen remodel estimate; and more. Skip Assist pricing is based on clients’ individual needs and customized for those seeking more consistent, on-demand assistance.

Give Skip Assist a try today for 20% off your first service with Beltway Bambino’s exclusive code: BBSKIP21. You won’t regret it.

Happy time-saving!

Tribery brings families together, even when apart

Tribery is a mobile app that allows families to send monthly printed family journals to their loved ones.

This is not your typical photo album app. You, the user, subscribes to the service which will send an album to your loved ones, near or far (not to yourself) each month!

Easy steps to accessing Tribery:
1) Download the app and invite your spouse (or just do it yourself) to upload pictures & write captions
2) Upload pictures and add captions to explain or add context
3) Tribery prints out the journal and ships it to a chosen loved one directly at the end of each month

Your loved ones will love receiving monthly journals! It’s an opportunity for them to see what is going on in your life, share the album with their friends or use it to communicate and ask questions.

I love that Tribery is collaborative. My husband logged in on his phone and uploaded some of his favorite pictures in addition to the ones I had already chosen from the month to include in the journal. The journal is about telling the story about what happened during the month, so adding captions helps to tell the story of the picture.

Use code: ALLISON123 and get your first printed journal FOR FREE!

A Sweet and Silly Holiday Treat

See Corduroy In Person at Imagination Stage. Give the gift of theatre, buy your tickets today!

Pictured: Alex Vernon as Corduroy & Ariana Caldwell as Lisa

Corduroy

DECEMBER 11, 2021 – JANUARY 23, 2022
Adapted for the Stage by Barry Kornhauser
Directed by Kathryn Chase Bryer

We all need a friend, and Lisa is instantly drawn to the perfectly imperfect teddy bear on display at the department store. If only she can convince her stressed-out mother to buy Corduroy for her! Meanwhile, Corduroy is determined to find his missing button and become worthy of going to a real home. After the store has closed, he goes on a hilariously destructive search–with the Night Watchman in comical pursuit. Full of mischief and clowning, this story of unconditional love, based on the books by Don Freeman, captures both the humanity and the merriment of the holiday season.  Best for ages 3-9.


The safety of our audiences, artists, and staff, is of the utmost importance. We follow CDC and government protocols/recommendations to keep your family safe.  All performances will be reduced (50%) capacity to welcome families observing strict social distancing. For more information click here.

“The play emphasizes slapstick humor that leaves its audience delightfully impaired by extreme laughter.”

– TWIN CITIES ARTS REVIEW OF THE CHILDREN’S THEATRE COMPANY OF MINNEAPOLIS PRODUCTION.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES:

Ballonacy

JANUARY 15, 2022 – FEBRUARY 20, 2022

A beautiful, movement-based show that revisits the classic film The Red Balloon. Nothing can go right for the character of the old man, whose days are gray and dreary–until he is visited by a friendly red balloon. In the playful physical style of Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton, the old man–an adult version of the boy in the film–regains his youthful spirit, with the help of the red balloon! Produced by special arrangement with Plays for New Audiences.

Imagination Stage is a holistic theatre arts organization for all children and youth.  For more information about our shows, classes, and camps, please visit our website.

Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical at The National

Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical is at The National November 23, 2021 – December 5, 2021 

DR. SEUSS’ HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS! THE MUSICAL broke box office records for two consecutive years on Broadway during its holiday engagements at the St. James and Hilton theatres in New York. Since then, more than 2.1 million theatregoers across America have been delighted by this heart-warming holiday musical, which The New York Times praised as “100 times better than any bedtime story” and the Gannett papers hailed as “A genius of a show! A total delight for both kids and adults.” 

DR. SEUSS’ HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS! THE MUSICAL features the hit songs “You’re A Mean One Mr. Grinch” and “Welcome Christmas” (written by Albert Hague and Dr. Seuss) from the original animated series. Max the Dog narrates as the mean and scheming Grinch, whose heart is “two sizes too small,” decides to steal Christmas away from the Holiday loving Whos. Magnificent sets (John Lee Beatty) and costumes (Robert Morgan) inspired by Dr. Seuss’ original illustrations help transport audiences to the whimsical world of Whoville, while the Music and Book of Mel Marvin and Timothy Mason breathe new life into this timeless story of the true meaning of Christmas. The 2018 production is directed by Matt August and choreographed by Bob Richard based on the original choreography by John DeLuca and originally created by 3-time Tony Award® winning director, Jack O’Brien.

https://youtu.be/2XotqTjqZoY

Here is a special discount code, giving you the opportunity to purchase three tickets and get one FREE. 

Offer is eligible for select-seats only, evening performances through 12/2. Eligible dates include 11/23, 11/24, 11/26, 11/27, 11/30, 12/1, 12/2. 

To redeem this offer, 

  1. Click here
  2. De. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical – On sale now! –> Buy Tickets 
  3. You will be redirected to Ticketmaster. 
  4. Enter code MAMAWHO at check out. 
  5. Enjoy the show! 

Important Information from the Covid-19 Information Center at The National can be found here.

Imagination Stage’s Hit Spy Adventure!

S.P.I.E.S. & The Lost Treasure of Atlantis* is back at Imagination Stage! Buy your ticket today for the hit immersive online performance November 13-28, 2021.

Full of surprises, fun, and memorable characters, each performance takes the cadets (audience) through a series of puzzles, codes, and challenges on a quest to help Spy Team 7 recover the stolen Heart of the Dragon from the evil Dr. Levinious. The experience is led by a hilarious improvisational actor  playing the role of Pat, who interacts with individual spy cadets in the Zoom room.

Part online escape room, part interactive game, this creative and immersive theatrical experience is a live virtual event perfect for ages 5+. Just $28 for the whole household!

*Formerly Spy Academy

Purchase your tickets here!!

“A fantastically entertaining conglomerate of action, adventure, suspense, and pure silliness perfect for ages 5 and up.”

– DC Metro Theater Arts review

For more information, please visit our website.

STEAM Family Days at ARTECHOUSE

ARTECHOUSE has been such a wonderful addition to the art scene in Washington, DC. It is unique in that each exhibit is mesmerizing and limitless with an interactive, technology component. The concepts are engrossing and unusual which makes it that much more appealing.

STEAM Family Days are back at ARTECHOUSE for a limited time. We got the chance to see the newest display at ARTECHOUSE; Life of a Neuron. Just like all of the exhibits they have, it was immersive and interactive. The main room allows guests to sit on cushions and just take in the bright, constantly changing art that is projected on the walls and floor. Our ten year old really found the topic fascinating and had lots of questions. Our six year old was a bit uneasy with the subject matter particularly as the display got closer to the end with faint ambulance noises- closing in on death (just an fyi). All other exhibits we have been to have captured both of my kids attention in a positive light.

When: Family Days are every Tuesday and Wednesday all day 

What: Families that book through this link will receive special pricing and an activity guide inspired by the exhibit Life of a Neuron. Through this limited offer all tickets are $17 and Family Packages are $60. Offer not valid the week of Thanksgiving .

About ARTECHOUSE: Started in 2017, ARTECHOUSE is on a mission to stimulate interest in the limitless possibilities of creative innovation and to push the boundaries of what is possible. Since founding we have expanded from our DC location to Miami and NYC—with more locations to come. 

About Life of a Neuron: Walk through a neuron—the “thinking cells” of the brain—and witness first-hand the beauty of one of science’s greatest mysteries: the human brain.

Life of a Neuron brings artists and scientists together for a groundbreaking collaboration to explore how the brain shapes the shared human experience. Through collaboration with the Society for Neuroscience and the world’s leading scientists and creatives, this immersive exhibit will allow us to experience a neuron—from pre-birth to death—providing an experiential view of life at a cellular level.

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