Beltway Bambinos

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

Weekend Picks

Experience the Mall Saturday and Sunday, December 5 and 6, to celebrate the season with Smithsonian. We’ve got special events galore to help you get in the holiday spirit, including musical performances, book signings, trunk shows, activities for kids, and more!  Participating museums include: National Museum of American History, National Museum of Air and Space, National Museum of Natural History, Freer Gallery of Art and Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, National Museum of the American Indian, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, National Museum of African American Art, National Postal Museum, and The Smithsonian Castle. Hours are 10:30am-5:30pm and the Holiday Festival is free.

This weekend Baltimore will be having Dollar or Less Days. Many of your favorite spots will only be $1 for admission. Get there early as lines will be long but they’ll move fast. Check the above link for participating places. See our post on Baltimore for ideas of other places to go.

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Ice! Featuring Santa Claus is Coming to Town is still going on at The Gaylord National Harbor. Guests can walk-through holiday attraction, kept at a chilly 9 degrees, marvel at two million pounds of hand-carved ice sculpture, have fun on five ice slides, walk and see the 7 individual rooms depicting the story of Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town and see The Frostbite Factory – a live carving zone.

Home Sweet Home Gingerbread  Workshop at National Building Museum is Saturday and Sunday. Get in the holiday spirit and construct a gingerbread house at the National Building Museum. Participants will learn how to use gingerbread walls and royal icing to build a house. We’ll provide the supplies and treats to make your gingerbread home as sweet as can be. Register online!

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‘Tis the Circus! A Holiday Party on High presented by Sweet Spot Aerial Productions at Atlas Performing Arts Friday-Sunday. The holidays can be a circus – quite literally, at this holiday party! As the guests arrive, one couple’s living room is transformed as acrobats, aerialists, jugglers and other performers dazzle with spectacular routines celebrating the magic of the holiday season. Fun for the whole family – prepare to be delighted, amazed and inspired. A unique and new holiday tradition. All ages. [Read more…]

Weekend Picks

Kids Euro Festival begins this weekend and lasts through November 8. It’s like taking a trip to Europe – but you don’t need a passport! Kids Euro Festival is a two-week long festival of European arts and culture presenting more than 125 free activities to D.C. metro area children and their families. There are performances, concerts, workshops, movies, storytelling, and more… and it’s all brought to you by the 28 European Union Member States!

Be sure and check out local Orchards & Festivals as well as Halloween events happening this weekend.

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Weekend Picks

This weekend kicks off on at noon today (Friday) at the popular  Saint Sophia’s annual Greek Festival. Its open all weekend 12-6 Friday & Saturday and 12-7 on Sunday. If you haven’t been, don’t miss out on this annual Festival. Amazing food, live entertainment, marketplace, children’s games and did I mention the amazing food….

Maryland Renaissance Festival will be joisting and serving up lots of turkey legs weekends through October 25. The festival is free to children 6 and under this weekend. Take a time machine back to medieval times. With plenty of entertainment for you and the kids, 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

Another busy weekend! Maryland Renaissance Festival is still going on and The Washington Nationals are in town playing this weekend. Want to start heading to Fall Festivals and Orchards? Check out our updated list.

 

Saturday-

Gates open at 9:00am:Andrews Air Force Base Air Show
(Park: FedEx Field and Branch Avenue Metro Station and they have shuttle service)
Guests will experience aerial demonstrations and learn more about the military personnel and equipment JBA uses to carry out the missions here. Open Ceremony 11:30am and Thunderbirds Performance at 3:00pm.

10:00am-4:00pm: The Big Build at National Building Museum
(401 F Street NW Washington, D.C. 20001)
Be a builder for the day at the Big Build festival! Amateur builders young and old can discover what it’s like to build a brick wall, carve stone, hammer nails, and much more as they work side-by-side with designers, builders, and artisans demonstrating their skills. Meet plumbers, ironworkers, landscape architects, woodworkers, and experts in many other fields to learn about their professions and hobbies. This year at the Big Build, visitors can; Climb aboard trucks and tractors, Construct a log cabin, Imagine the view from the beams of a skyscraper, Compete in a nail driving contest and Create a hardware windchime.
[Read more…]

Weekend Picks are endless!

There’s no excuse to stay home this weekend. So much happening, it was hard to pick the best.

The Kensington Train Show is back! Model trains will chug around the tracks at the family-friendly event. Saturday and Sunday your kids can view the trains from 11:00am-5:00pm both days. Admission is $5 for adults/$2 for children/$10 for a family. Kensington Town Hall 3710 Mitchell Street Kensington, Maryland

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Maryland Renaissance Festival will be weekends of August 29-October 25. The festival is free to children 6 and under this weekend. Take a time machine back to medieval times. With plenty of entertainment for you and the kids, 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!
[Read more…]

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!
[Read more…]

Fall 2015 classes in and around Washington, DC

Summer is ending {sigh} so we’ve highlighted some places offering Fall Classes. There are so many possibilities so please contact us and let us know if you have a favorite that is not on our list. Here’s to Pumpkin Spice Lattes and the turning of leaves. Happy Fall!

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Adventure Theatre: Fall Academy Classes for children ages 12 months-Grade 12 can be found here.

Curiosity Zone: Hands-on science classes in a science lab for children ages 3-Grade 5. Classes can be found here.

Hillwood Estate: Various themes and sessions for the preschool classes. Classes can be found here.

Imagination Stage: Theme-based Fall Class Schedule for children ages 12 months-age 21 can be found here.

Little Loft: A neighborhood art studio which has two locations, Capitol Hill and Takoma Park. Offering classes for preschool kids, open studio time and off school classes. Click here and choose the location to find all class options.

Meadowlark Music: Classes include parachute, scarves, instruments, drums, puppets, balls, guitar, flute, dancing, singing, giggling, clapping, movement and more! They are designed to engage caregivers and little ones in an organic way…which leads to us all enjoying our little ones’ musical discoveries in a remarkably positive and friendly environment. More information can be found here for children 0-3 years old.

Montgomery County Recreation Department: You can find The Guide which is full of classes here or you can pick one up at a Montgomery County Library or Recreation Center.

Round House Theatre: Fall classes consist of 8-week sessions on Saturdays. Classes for children ages 2-Grade 8 can be found here.

Silver Stars Gymnastics: Fall classes for children ages 18 months and up can be found here.

Smithsonian National Zoo: Preschool classes throughout the year can be found here. After school classes for children ages 6-10 can be found here. Unique, HomeSchool Classes are also available, find more info here.

The Children’s Art Studio: A 10-week Fall session for children ages PK-Teenagers. Classes can be found here.

The Creative Difference: After school enrichment classes for children ages PK-Grade 5 can be found here.

Quick Feet: Soccer for 2-5 year olds in DC, MD and VA. Classes can be found here.

Washington DC JCC: Fall Classes for children ages newborn to age 4 can be found here. After school enrichment classes for children Pre-K- Grade 6 can be found here.

 

Indoor Gym Spaces: th

BusyBees

Gymboree

Kidville

My Gym

 

Family-Friendly Yoga Studios:

Tranquil Space

Lil Omm

Summer may be ending but the fun in Washington, DC is not!

Many students in Washington, DC go back to school tomorrow (sigh/hooray). Summer may be ending for some but that doesn’t mean the fun in the city is ending. There’s still plenty of fun to be had! Splash pads and pools have a few more weeks open.

thThe Beach at The National Building Museum presents a one-of-a-kind destination for visitors, an interactive architectural installation that brings the quintessential summer experience of going to the beach to downtown Washington, D.C. Spanning across the Museum’s Great Hall, the BEACH, created in partnership with Snarkitecture, will cover 10,000 square feet and include an “ocean” of nearly one million recyclable translucent plastic balls. Check it out before it closes Sept. 7.

Good Humor Ice Cream will be giving away free ice cream all week long in Washington, DC.

Washington Nationals allow kids to Run the Bases on games played on Sundays. They have games throughout September.

DC Library has many events each day at various libraries for babies, kids and teens.
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