Weekday Adventures

Weekday Adventures: Mr. Skip, a rainforest play and Harambe

March 16, 2014

Say it ain’t so…..more snow?! Before heading out tomorrow to any of the picks, check to make sure they are open. We have had a few posts geared towards surviving (another) snow day, check them out for ideas and local sledding hills. Our Pinterest page has some indoor activities and craft ideas as well.

Monday, March 17:

9:30am- Harambe at Bloombars
(3222 11th St NW, Washington, DC. 20010)
Think of it as your little one’s first opportunity to express his or her voice (into a microphone), dance, play a drum or percussion instrument, shout, or sing-along to songs that build character, confidence and community.

9:30am-11:00am- Rise and Rhyme at Busboys and Poets
(5531 Baltimore Ave., Hyattsville, Md. 20781)
Rise + Rhyme is a weekly Busboys and Poets series for local stay-at-home parents and early rising families of all kinds! Featuring performances and stories for children ages 5 and under. This week Marsha Goodman-Wood is performing. Suggested donation of $5.

[Read more…]

Weekday Adventures: Georgia O’Keeffe, Amelia Earhart and Date Night(s)!

March 9, 2014

Hope everyone was able to enjoy the beautiful weather on Saturday. We spent all of Saturday at the playground, not sure if our son was more excited or if we were. We are looking forward to the days staying brighter, longer.

We created a post on exploring DC, VA and MD indoors. You can find at the top of the homepage “Indoor Fun” as well as here. Whether it’s to escape the cold or beat the heat, we hope you find it useful. Have a great week and hopefully your kids will be back on a regular sleeping routine in no time!

Monday, March 10:

10:00am-11:30am- Open Studio for Toddlers at Art Space
(614 S St NW, Washington, DC. 20001)
Toddlers and their accompanying adult are encouraged to come and create age-appropriate art projects. Rachel Dickerson Brunswick and her 2 year old daughter, Ona, will set up materials for safe, fun, and creative projects. Children will learn the art or cleaning up as well! Wear clothes you don’t mind getting dirty in. Siblings are welcome. $5 drop in fee.

10:30am-11:30am- Young Portrait Explorers: Georgia O’Keeffe at National Portrait Gallery
(8th and F St Washington, DC.)
Become a Young Portrait Explorer and discover the National Portrait Gallery through history and art. Activities include looking at a portrait by American artist Georgia O’Keeffe (1887-1986), listening to a story about her, and participating in a hands-on activity. TOddlers up to age 5, registration is required.

Tuesday, March 11:

10:00am- Museum of Natural History’s Butterfly Pavilion (2nd floor)
(10th St. and Constitution Ave., NW)
Every Tuesday at 10:00am you can get into the magnificent butterfly pavilion for free! Make sure and get a free ticket by the entrance. We visited this last month and were amazed by how many butterflies were flying around, some even landing on a shoulder. Look closely and you could spot a frog under some trees.

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Weekday Adventures: Mardi Gras, Nature Centers and Mad Science

March 3, 2014

Well another school closure for us tomorrow so our fingers are crossed that the below events are ON. We need to get out of the house, pronto! We will try and update you if any are cancelled but recommend calling or checking on their individual websites before heading out.

If you are from an area that hasn’t been highlighted much on Beltway Bambinos please reach out to us and let us know so we can research your area and find great events going on.

Tuesday, March 4:

9:00am-5:00pm- PB & Jack
(9540 Main St, Fairfax VA 22031)
Bead it Baby at 2:00pm (included with admission). Join the PB & Jack crew for 45 minutes of beading and necklace making. No supplies necessary. Kids 3-5 years old welcome. Open play is from 9:00am-5:00pm and is open everyday.

Another snow day: Staying sane and having fun with your children

March 2, 2014

You got the email from OPM. Your child found their school on the School Closure list. We’ve seen most activities listed on our Weekday Adventures cancelled, so we come to you with some alternatives.

Watch:

We aren’t advocates of having our children sit in front of the TV typically but snow days can call for a bit of relaxation in between sledding and baking. We’ve highlighted a few movies that your child will be excited to watch whether you have Netflix or On Demand.

Netflix:
Dr. Seuss’ Lorax
Car Toons: Mater’s Tall Tales
Disney Hercules
Disney Mulan
Thomas and Friends

On Demand:
Frozen: Buy from$21.99
Planes: Buy from $16.99
Free Birds: Rent from $4.99

PBS:
Celebrate Dr. Seuss’ birthday all-week long

Eat:

What’s a snow day with no treats? In our house we call these “Power Bars”. We do NOT add sprinkles to ours like the photo.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 cups rolled oats
1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

Instructions:

In a saucepan heat the coconut oil, honey, and peanut butter until melted and creamy. Stir in the vanilla. Pour over the oats in a large bowl. Stir until thoroughly coated. Let cool for 5 minutes.

Stir in the mini chocolate chips and sprinkles. Take Tablespoons of oats in your hand and press very firmly until it forms a ball shape. Set on a piece of wax paper and let set. Makes 20 granola bites. **You can also press the mixture firmly into a greased 8×8 pan, then cut into 20 even squares. From there you can either eat them square or press into the ball shape.

Snowmen on a Stick:

You most likely have all of these ingredients at your house and won’t need to search empty shelves at the store in order to make these weather appropriate treats. We love the idea of these because your child can absolutely help make these!

Ingredients:

Bananas
Grapes
Carrot
Apple
Bamboo skewers/Toothpick
Mini chocolate chips
Pretzel sticks

Instructions:

For each snowman, you will need three thick slices of banana, a grape, a sliver of carrot, and a triangular piece of apple. (Tip: Poke a hole in the apple piece with a bamboo skewer first to make assembly easier.)

Have your kids slide the fruit onto the skewer, then use the carrot slivers for noses, mini chocolate chips for eyes and buttons, and pretzel sticks for arms.

Move around:
Your weekly yoga class is cancelled, again….The gym is closed, again….here’s a fun family friendly yoga session you can do with your child.

Make:

It’s almost St. Patrick’s Day and quite frankly we are tired of making snowmen and snowflake crafts. Have wine corks you’ve been saving for some reason? Take 3 together and have your child dip them in paint and make shamrocks. Dip their hand print in paint and make a cute leprechaun.

Do:

Sled! Besides the sledding hills we listed in a previous snow day post, we’ve come up with a few more.

Washington Waldorf School- 4800 Sangamore Rd, Bethesda, MD
Takoma Park Middle School – 7611 Piney Branch Rd. Silver Spring, MD
Westgate Park- 7550 Magarity Rd. McLean, VA
Book Hill Park- 1693 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington, DC 20007
Wheaton Regional Park- 9500 Brunett Ave., Silver Spring, MD 20901
George Washington Masonic Memorial- 101 Callahan Dr, Alexandria, VA
Fort Reno Park- 3800 Donaldson Pl NW, Washington, DC 20018

Lastly on your snow day agenda, while your kiddos are sleeping, you can think of warmer weather and sign your child(ren) up for Spring Break and Summer Camp.

Weekday Adventures: Clowning around, beat-boxing, and ukulele fun

February 23, 2014

Hopefully you got outside and enjoyed the weather this weekend. Since we hear more cold (and snow?!) are in the weekday forecast, we are working on an Indoor Activity Guide so you have some new places to escape indoors with your children. For some more fun options, check out the rundown below.

Monday, Feb. 24

9:30am- Harambe at BloomBars
(3222 11th St NW, Washington, DC. 20010)
Think of it as your little one’s first opportunity to express his or her voice (into a microphone), dance, play a drum or percussion instrument, shout, or sing-along to songs that build character, confidence and community.

10:30am- Story and music at Politics and Prose
(5015 Connecticut Ave NW, DC. 20015)
Meet downstairs in the children’s department for thirty minutes of songs and stories. Grab a treat in the cafe before or afterwards or swing by Little Red Fox down the street for a coffee, lunch or treat.

[Read more…]

Weekday Adventures: PB & Jack, Rainbow Rock Band & The Singing Lizard

February 16, 2014

Is your child off school tomorrow (Feb. 17)? Check out our post on what to do with your child when they don’t have school.

We’ve also created a running list of on-going fun around the area which we plan to keep updated moving forward. Local puppet shows and theaters will be on that post instead of listing them each day or week.

Monday, Feb. 17 (Happy Presidents Day!)

8:00am- Happy Birthday George Washington at Mt. Vernon
Free admission to celebrate! Check out the days events here.

[Read more…]

Weekday adventures: Rise and Rhyme, Under the Canopy and Flower Buds

February 9, 2014

We hope everyone had a fun weekend! We stopped by Child’s Play to see the superheros; sat on Daddy’s shoulder to get a glimpse of Batman (as it was a very popular event) and proceeded to play with the trains for an hour. Note to self and all of you: get there early for a good seat for the next popular event. This week is packed with excitement and adventures. We have tickets to see Under the Canopy on Sunday, so if you catch the show before then be sure to let us all know what you thought. Also, keep an eye out for our Spring Break Camp post that will be out mid-week.

Monday, Feb. 10

This week’s adventures: Mr. Skip, Art Workshop & Storyville

February 3, 2014

We wanted to thank everyone for the overwhelming support we continue to receive! We love finding the areas top picks to share with you. We are working on a summer camp wrap up post and will publish it by the end of the week, so stay tuned. Please continue to share, like and comment as we would love to reach more of you and learn about how we can better serve your needs.

Monday, Feb. 3

9:00am-9:00pm- Storyville (Monday-Friday & weekends)
(6105 Kenwood Avenue Baltimore, Maryland 21237)
(1811 Woodlawn Drive Woodlawn, Maryland 21207)
Baltimore libraries opened Storyville for children 0-5, an interactive early literacy and learning center in two locations, Rosedale and Woodlawn. In Storyville, they have created an incredibly well-designed mini-village, complete with a post office, grocery store, house, theatre, construction zone, and a library (each area includes themed books available for check-out). Free!

12:00pm-9:00pm- Leisure Pool at Cub Run RECenter (Monday-Friday & weekends)
(4630 Stonecroft Blvd. Chantilly, VA 20151)
With a zero-depth entry and plenty of play features, this is the perfect pool for children. This 4,860 square foot leisure pool is equipped with an in-water playground, numerous spray features, a current channel (lazy river), vortex, open area for classes and lessons, and two waterslides, including one 50 foot fully enclosed slide that exits the building and reenters at the bottom. The whirlpool spa overlooks the leisure pool.

12:00pm-9:00pm- Ice Skating at the National Harbour in Georgetown (Monday-Friday & weekends; hours may vary)
(3000 K St NW, Washington, DC.)
It’s not too late to lace up those skates & take your bambino ice skating. Open all week & on weekends. After you skate you can walk up to Baked & Wired to taste DC’s BEST cupcakes (in our opinion at least!) [Read more…]