Beltway Bambinos

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

Weekend Picks July 22-24

Montgomery County celebrates its agricultural heritage by promoting local farms, and inviting our residents to indulge in seasonally fresh food during the 27th Annual Farm Tour and Harvest as well as throughout the entire growing season. Many of the farms that participated in the annual farm tour are open throughout the growing season. Activities will vary from farm to farm, but several will have hayrides, pony rides, music, animals to visit, and other activities planned.

Has anyone been to the Icebergs exhibit at The National Building Museum? Open 10am-5pm get a reprieve from the weekend heat and cool off with icebergs and shaved ice. 

Plenty of fun places to COOL off this weekend!!!

Friday-

Lots of live music tonight!

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(Yards Park)

Saturday-

9:30am AND 11:00am: Vladimir Goes for the Gold at National Theatre
(1321 Pennsylvania Ave NW)
Meet Vladimir Cashewninski: Champion Badminton player, and sole athlete from the tiny People’s Republic of Insurgistan, as he prepares to compete at the Olympic Games. The night before his big day, he has an enthralling dream that takes him to Ancient Olympia, where he meets the Olympic Herald and teams up with the audience to explore the first Olympic Games.
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Weekend Picks June 10-12

Celebrate Fairfax is Northern Virginia’s largest community-wide celebration and will take place June 10-12, 2016 at the Fairfax County Government Center. The 25-acre site was magically filled with fascinating sights and sounds of more than 300 exhibitors, food vendors, and interactive activities. Celebrate Fairfax! showcases live concerts on eight stages, Innovation Health Children’s Avenue, a petting zoo, the Fairfax County Karaoke Championship, carnival rides, and great festival foods. Another fun free activity for kids is the Fairfax Express Trackless Train Ride and nightly fireworks.

Also worth checking out is the Lake Anne Chalk Festival, happening Saturday & Sunday.

The weekend is supposed to be sunny and hot. Cool down at  a splash park, water park or pool!

Washington Nationals take on the Phillies with day games on Saturday and Sunday!

 

Friday-

5:00pm-8:30pm: Jazz in the Sculpture Gardenth-1
(7th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW)
The Jazz in the Garden Series begins its 15th season in May. The free concert series features jazz artists performing a wide variety of styles—salsa, blues fusion, xylophone, Afrofunk, and more—every Friday evening from 5:00 to 8:30 in the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden. You can purchase food and adult beverages or bring your own picnic (but no adult bevvies are allowed in).
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Memorial Day Weekend 2016 in Washington, DC

With the holiday weekend among us, we’ve chosen a few well-known picks that pay tribute to Memorial Day in addition to some familiar events. We’ve also put together a short list of suggested Day Trips that won’t keep you and your family in the car too long but will get you “away”. An obvious and free pick is to visit the various memorials along the Mall.

Washington Nationals play this weekend against my home team the St. Louis Cardinals. Bring your pup to the park on Friday or catch a giveaway game on Saturday day game or a Sunday day game!

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Top Eleven: Bambinos in Baltimore (Edited)

With Baltimore being about a 45 minute drive (if you time it right), it’s the perfect destination for a day outing or even an overnight trip.We’ve got your itinerary planned for you; keeping your Bambinos busy while having a blast being in a new city. Unfortunately, this isn’t the city full of Smithsonian Museums so you will be charged to enter most of the attractions, but many are worth the price. Check their websites for daily discounts and specials.

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1. Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Museum– 901 West Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD 21223

2. Port Discovery Children’s Museum– 35 Market Place, Baltimore, MD 21202 6a0120a61aa83a970c017d3f9ae55d970c-550wi
A few hours here and even your big kids will nap on the way home. The three-story climbing structure will physically tire them, but the constant learning opportunities, cleverly disguised as play, will leave them mentally exhausted too. The museum is an oasis designed for children ages 2 to 10. Port Discovery is attraction where kids can play, learn, exercise their creativity and expand their minds.

3. National Aquarium– 501 East Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD 21202

4. The Fire Museum of Maryland– 1301 York Road, Lutherville, MD 21093

5. Sandy Point State Park– 100 East College Parkway Annapolis, MD 21401
A day at the bay will make them sleep all night. The beach at this 786-acre park has a commanding view of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. The park’s recreational activities include swimming, fishing, crabbing, boating and windsurfing. Visitors enjoy picnicking as well as wildlife viewing and bird watching.

6. Maryland Science Center– 601 Light Street, Baltimore, MD 21230
Hands-on learning including a Planetarium and IMAX!

7. Six Flags America Baltimore/Washington, DC– 13710 Central Avenue, Upper Marlboro, MD 20721

8. The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore–1876 Mansion House Drive Baltimore, MD 21217

9. Inner Harbor- Baltimore, MD 21202
From family-friendly museums and restaurants to satisfy every palate, to exciting nightlife, cultural experiences and spectacular people-watching, Baltimore’s Inner Harbor offers more to see and do than you can imagine.

10. Oriole Park at Camden Yards– 333 West Camden Street Baltimore, MD 21201

11. Medieval Times– 7000 Arundel Mills Cir, Hanover, MD 21076
Horses, sword play, javelin throwing and a feast at this elaborate dinner theater served “medieval style” (i.e without silverware) has my son sold on going here.

medieval-times

Weekend Picks and Labor Day

Phew– I survived my first full week with my oldest being in full-time PreK….barely. How’d everyone else do?

Labor Day is the official end to summer but that doesn’t mean the fun in the City stops. Refer to our Summer Guide for places to cool off at this weekend.

The Kennedy Center kicks off a fun exhibit today; Skateboarding, Music and Media and runs through Sept. 13. The boys in my house will definitely want to check this out, maybe we will head there when they host an Open Skate Session! There will be art and movie screenings as well as opportunities to watch skaters and even participate.

The Nationals play all weekend in town! Friday and Saturday are evening games, do I hear a date night opportunity?! Sunday and Monday are afternoon games, perfect to take the family. 

 

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Saturday- 

10:00am-7:00pm: Maryland Renaissance Festival will be the weekends of August 29-October 25. The festival kicked off  last weekend! The festival is free to children 11 and under this weekend. Take a time machine back to medieval times. With plenty of entertainment, including music, joisting, puppetry, pony rides and so much more. Your children will see people dressed up in 16th century outfits. Dress like a knight and come participate!
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Weekend Picks: Roller skate, fly around at a fair and watch an outdoor movie

Didn’t get enough carnival rides and fried twinkles on the boardwalk this summer? Head over to the Montgomery County Fair. It is happening through Saturday, August 22. Fair and carnival hours vary as do animal exhibits in Old MacDonald’s Barn. Children 11 and under are FREE while adults cost $10. Check the schedule for daily events. Address is 16 Chestnut Street, Gaithersburg, MD 20877.

Prince William County Fair is also happening through Saturday, August 22. Adults $10, Children over 5 $5 (with specials on various days).

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11:00am-6:45pm Weekends: Roller Skate at NPS Park before it closes for the season
(1500 Anacostia Drive SE, Washington, D.C)
Have you checked out the National Park Pavilion turned roller rink? Free roller skate rentals with a valid ID.

Potomac Nationals are in town and have some fun promotions and events happening, including a Ryan Zimmerman Bobblehead giveaway on Sunday.

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Weekend Picks: Festival Cubed, Sample Fall Classes and Rock Out

Hope everyone enjoyed a short week and the kids are off to a good start of school. Beltway Bambinos is wrapping up another amazing beach week and will sadly return to reality tomorrow.

DC splash and pools are open through this weekend! And we thought water fun was gone come Labor Day. 

Saturday-

7:00am-4:30pm: ChalkFest at Reston Town Center I02-121105-Sarasota_Chalk_Festival-5
(Reston Town Center: Market Street, between Library Street and Presidents Street)
ChalkFest At Reston Town Center is presented by the Initiative for Public Art – Reston (IPAR) and Reston Town Center. All are invited to create chalk drawings on Market Street. The event is open to professional artists, amateurs, businesses, families, and kids of all ages. There will be prizes for professional artists, amateurs, families and kids, in addition to the “Audience Choice Award”.

9:00am-1:00pm: Sample Classes at Imagination Stage
(4908 Auburn Ave, Bethesda, MD. 20814)
Try a sample class on us! Get an up-close and personal taste of what classes are like at Imagination Stage! (We promise you’ll have a blast!) Sample classes are about 20 minutes in length. Parents are encouraged to join the samplers for children in grades 3 or younger. Parents of children in grades 4 or older are welcome to observe the sampler, but not required.  Please note that this is NOT a drop-off event. Children MUST be accompanied by a caregiver.

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