KidFest: Memorial Day weekend in Concord

concord-kidfest

Bay Area KidFest, a 3-day event combining live entertainment, activities and sports for children and 100 arts & crafts exhibitors, kicks of this Saturday in Concord. Be clear, the vendors are there to sell you something, whether it’s loyalty to Dora and Diego or simply pizza, but so much fun will be on hand, that [...]

99 Days of Summer for East Bay Kids

99 things to do this summer in the East Bay

We thought it would be fun to have one activity for each day of the year between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Whether you like to add them to your calendar or just bookmark this page for inspiration, we hope you’ll find plenty of things to do in the East Bay this summer. Let’s get [...]

The New Parkway Family Classics

New Parkway in Oakland

Do you need any more good reasons to go to the movies? Here are three great ones brought to you by the New Parkway Family Classics! The New Parkway theater in Oakland has great food, BEER, and room for kids to move around. Friday and Saturdays feature throwback movies — called the Family Classics — [...]

Take what you need

Take what you need, Oakland

My friend, Carla, recently moved to Oakland with her little girl and they’ve been spreading a little sunshine as they move through our community. This project was spawned as part of a Keep Austin Weird idea but I think it works perfectly for our quirky corner of the world. I love her spirit and I [...]

Free resources for families at the Microsoft Store in SF (with giveaway!)

Microsoft at The Mall at Rockingham Park

A Microsoft Store just opened in San Francisco at the Westfield Shopping Center (the newest, fanciest mall with Bloomingdale’s off the Powell St BART station). It is a brightly lit shopping extravaganza for fans of the XBox and other MS projects. I joined a cadre of media to watch the grand opening store unveiling in [...]

Hyperlocal sites for parents across the country

kids-activities-websites

Since launching this site, I have had the great pleasure of becoming connected to other hyperlocal bloggers who have started similar sites in their own cities. From Atlanta to Grand Rapids, MI to Westchester County, NY, my peers have put together online resources to serve their communities, and perhaps, with summer travel on the horizon, [...]

It’s that time of the year: May is Bike Month

Get your kid riding

Put your helmet on and let’s ride! The East Bay Bicycle Coalition is offering family safety bike clinics, rodeos, helmet fittings, and street parties in addition to the usual Bike to Work and School rides. Find some more events on the EBBC website calendar. I requested their help in deciphering which rides and parties might [...]

What was summer like when you were a kid?

How did you spend your childhood summers?

This memoir of my childhood summers was sponsored by Camp Galileo. I was just talking with Whitney this morning about what sorts of activities filled our summer vacations. I don’t remember any of the cool daycamp options that we have in the Bay Area today. I’m not sure if they didn’t exist or were too [...]

Free Comic Book Day is May 4th

free-comic-book-day

Designed to expose folks both to comic books as an art and entertainment form and also to their local independent comic book shops, Free Comic Book Day is being observed on May 4th by a handful of East Bay locations. The free books, designed especially for this promotion, will satisfy a variety of ages and [...]

Weekend Planner (May 4 + 5)

boytelescopechabot

So maybe it’s not as cool as ‘First Friday,’ but you can probably get some great deals out at first-Saturday flea market in Alameda. You’ll never have so much fun learning (or practicing) a language with your tot! (This one is Italian.) There’s some tough pizza competition in town, but nothing compares to student garden-grown [...]

Weekend Planner (April 27 + 28)

octopretzel

Can you think of anything sweeter than starting the weekend with a sing-a-long? If you’re in or near Alameda, you could check out their Mama Goose Story Time for babies and tots. Bring the fam to La Pena for a Latin American music concert. I know some families who’ve crossed the bay bridge to see [...]

Crab Cove in Alameda for little explorers

Get your hands dirty at Crab Cove in Alameda

I was a lucky chaperone on a field trip to Alameda’s Crab Cove with a class of curious kindergartners.  I learned about marine mammals (native critters), estuaries (fresh water + ocean water), and how often snacks and hugs are required to keep our energy up (lots!). What’s so special about Crab Cove? The Crab Cove [...]

MOCHA is moving

readertip

The terrific hands-on Museum of Children’s Art is moving to a bigger and better space. Don’t worry, it’s still in Oakland! The new location for MOCHA will be at 1625 Clay St, just a few blocks from the 19th St BART station. Key dates The last day open to the public at the current location, [...]

See you at Cal Day?

visting the bug doctor

There really is something for everyone as UC Berkeley, AKA Cal, opens its doors to the families of the East Bay for Cal Day. My husband and second grader have their eyes on auditing another physics class while my kindergartner and toddler want to run around the grounds making slime and looking for doggies and [...]

Weekend Planner (April 20 + 21)

rockingkidssingalong

Drop in for a musical play group at La Pena.  Take your LEGO “maniac” to the West Oakland library for some Lego mania. Saturday is Cal day. So much going on around campus that you’ll want a passport. Ditch the loud music and jumping castles – instead, spread mulch, plant seeds and listen to poetry. [...]

Exploratorium Opens at New SF Location

Plankton Populations at the Exploratorium

The Exploratorium, long a favorite destination for Bay Area families, has relocated to Pier 15 along the Embarcadero of San Francisco Bay, finally wrapping up its move from its old location at the Palace of Fine Arts. It opens to the public with an ambitious array of public entertainment offerings, many of them free, on [...]

Free Admission: Creativity Day in San Francisco

childrens-creativity-museum

The Children’s Creativity Museum, located next to Yerba Buena Gardens in San Francisco is hosting Creativity Day on Saturday, April 13, 2013. This event is free to the public. Visitors of all ages are invited to meet featured innovators and enjoy a variety of activities and programs such as: Facilitated workshops designed to build creative confidence in youth [...]