Here are a few things happening around town this weekend:
Loads of LA-area museums are opening their doors - FOR FREE! Check out the list: http://www.museumsla.org/news.asp
Star Eco Station in Culver City is hosting a Dinofaire. Tix have to be purchased in advance: http://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/event?llr=oszzw7eab&oeidk=a07e5enz3234d39f01d
They Might Be Giants, 3:00 pm family show on 1/28 @ UCLA's Royce Hall: http://www.uclalive.org/calendar/event_detail.asp?id=139
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, 1:00 pm @ Theatre West:
http://www.theatrewest.org/
Golden Dragon Parade, 1/28 & 29, Chinatown:
http://chinatownla.com/calendar.php?eventId=80
"Mahler's World" children's concert (ages 5-11) @ Disney Concert Hall, 1/28, 11:00 am - 12:00 pm: http://www.laphil.com/tickets/program-detail.cfm?id=2390&utm_medium=c&utm_source=all&utm_campaign=tsfymahler
Mini Hip Hop Classes @ Sue B Dance Co., 1/28 @ 4:30 pm:
http://www.experiencela.com/calendar/event/42699
Metropolis II @ LACMA, supposed to thrilling for the kiddos!
http://www.lacma.org/art/exhibition/metropolis-ii
Showing posts with label downtown. Show all posts
Showing posts with label downtown. Show all posts
Friday, January 27, 2012
Friday, October 28, 2011
Halloween Weekend Happenings
Friday, October 28
Moorpark, Underwood Family Farms: Fall Harvest Festival (through 10/31), 9 - 6
Santa Ana, Santa Ana Zoo: Boo at the Zoo (also on 10/29 & 30*), 5:30 - 8 pm
Topanga, Theatricum Botanicum: Theatricum Bootanicum, 4 - 10 pm
Irvine, Tanaka Farms: Pumpkin Patch (through 10/31), 9 am - 6 pm (9-3 on 10/31)
South Pasadena: Halloween Spooktacular (free), 5:30 - 7:30 pm
Griffith Park, Live Steamers: Halloween Ghost Train (through 10/31), 7 - 10 pm
Saturday, October 29
Griffith Park, Los Angeles Zoo: Boo at the Zoo
Downtown LA, Convention Center: Green Festival, 10 - 7 (also on 10/30*, 11-6)
Pasadena, Vroman's: Vroman's Annual Halloween Party (stories, trick-or-treating), 10:00 am
Los Angeles, Skirball Cultural Center: multiple family events, (also on 10/30*)
Los Angeles, LACMA: Tim Burton Closing Weekend Events
Los Angeles, LAPD Northeast Division: Open House (scroll to bottom of page)
Los Feliz, Franklin Elementary: Franklin Fall Festival, 1 - 6
Silver Lake, Ivanhoe Elementary: Ivanhoedown, 1 - 8
Los Angeles, J. Paul Getty Museum: Family Drawing Hour, 3:00 pm
Silver Lake, Rose Scharlin Nursery School: Halloween Hullabaloo, 4 - 8 pm
San Pedro & Wilmington: Happy Harbor Halloween, 12 - 3
Culver City, Star Eco Station: Enchanted Green Hallow's Eve (also on 10/30*), 12 - 6
Sunday, October 30
Pasadena, MakeSpace ARTS: Children's Halloween (not scary) Art Party (free), 3 - 6
*See above listings for events that go through the weekend and into Monday.
Moorpark, Underwood Family Farms: Fall Harvest Festival (through 10/31), 9 - 6
Santa Ana, Santa Ana Zoo: Boo at the Zoo (also on 10/29 & 30*), 5:30 - 8 pm
Topanga, Theatricum Botanicum: Theatricum Bootanicum, 4 - 10 pm
Irvine, Tanaka Farms: Pumpkin Patch (through 10/31), 9 am - 6 pm (9-3 on 10/31)
South Pasadena: Halloween Spooktacular (free), 5:30 - 7:30 pm
Griffith Park, Live Steamers: Halloween Ghost Train (through 10/31), 7 - 10 pm
Saturday, October 29
Griffith Park, Los Angeles Zoo: Boo at the Zoo
Downtown LA, Convention Center: Green Festival, 10 - 7 (also on 10/30*, 11-6)
Pasadena, Vroman's: Vroman's Annual Halloween Party (stories, trick-or-treating), 10:00 am
Los Angeles, Skirball Cultural Center: multiple family events, (also on 10/30*)
Los Angeles, LACMA: Tim Burton Closing Weekend Events
Los Angeles, LAPD Northeast Division: Open House (scroll to bottom of page)
Los Feliz, Franklin Elementary: Franklin Fall Festival, 1 - 6
Silver Lake, Ivanhoe Elementary: Ivanhoedown, 1 - 8
Los Angeles, J. Paul Getty Museum: Family Drawing Hour, 3:00 pm
Silver Lake, Rose Scharlin Nursery School: Halloween Hullabaloo, 4 - 8 pm
San Pedro & Wilmington: Happy Harbor Halloween, 12 - 3
Culver City, Star Eco Station: Enchanted Green Hallow's Eve (also on 10/30*), 12 - 6
Sunday, October 30
Pasadena, MakeSpace ARTS: Children's Halloween (not scary) Art Party (free), 3 - 6
*See above listings for events that go through the weekend and into Monday.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Ideas for Rainy Day Play
We Angelenos really don't know what to do with ourselves when it rains. And it's especially perplexing for those of us with kids. Where do we take them?! They need to get their ya-yas out somehow. Indoor playgrounds are great but it's nice to mix things up once in a while.
How about a little art? Head over to LACMA, bring your kid's NexGen card (or apply for one), and absorb some culture. NexGen gets kids 17 and under plus their grown-up into LACMA for free to explore permanent collections and certain special exhibitions. Best of all, you can MAKE your OWN ART. The museum generously supplies paper and paint! Check out these masterpieces my 4-year-old created there. He knows more about art than I do (he references Lynda Benglis, whose work he saw at MOCA, and Jackson Pollack), thanks to his talented artist babysitter.
NexGen also entitles you to discounts on art classes and items in the museum shop. Pret-tay, pret-tay amazing! Also, I've got it on good authority that it is possible to find free, 2-hour parking around the museum. Free fun is always good!
Another idea is to go for a dip in a pool. Sound crazy?! Not so much . . . Echo Park Deep is a year-round, indoor city-run pool, located right off the 101 freeway near downtown. The facility offers myriad aquatic activities, including recreational swim, team sports, and lessons - all for reasonable rates.
Or, there's The Natural History Museum, an amazing educational resource for kids of all ages. Check out the new Dinosaur Hall, Spider Pavilion, Hall of Gems and Minerals, Insect Zoo, and more.
These ideas are just the beginning. There's more than to do indoors in our rain-soaked city than we realize. So, go on, get out, and Play in LA!
How about a little art? Head over to LACMA, bring your kid's NexGen card (or apply for one), and absorb some culture. NexGen gets kids 17 and under plus their grown-up into LACMA for free to explore permanent collections and certain special exhibitions. Best of all, you can MAKE your OWN ART. The museum generously supplies paper and paint! Check out these masterpieces my 4-year-old created there. He knows more about art than I do (he references Lynda Benglis, whose work he saw at MOCA, and Jackson Pollack), thanks to his talented artist babysitter.
NexGen also entitles you to discounts on art classes and items in the museum shop. Pret-tay, pret-tay amazing! Also, I've got it on good authority that it is possible to find free, 2-hour parking around the museum. Free fun is always good!
Another idea is to go for a dip in a pool. Sound crazy?! Not so much . . . Echo Park Deep is a year-round, indoor city-run pool, located right off the 101 freeway near downtown. The facility offers myriad aquatic activities, including recreational swim, team sports, and lessons - all for reasonable rates.
Or, there's The Natural History Museum, an amazing educational resource for kids of all ages. Check out the new Dinosaur Hall, Spider Pavilion, Hall of Gems and Minerals, Insect Zoo, and more.
These ideas are just the beginning. There's more than to do indoors in our rain-soaked city than we realize. So, go on, get out, and Play in LA!
Monday, October 24, 2011
Green It Up This Weekend!
Green Festival is coming up this Saturday and Sunday (29th & 30th) at the LA Convention Center and they'll have a Kids' Zone for our future environmental stewards. Sounds fun and educational.
A Play Date BORDERing on Perfect
Credit for this play date idea goes to my mama friend, L. She is expert on all things downtown, as far as I'm concerned. And she is the one who introduced me to this fun eating/playing combo at The Border Grill and Bonaventure Hotel - both on Figueroa, connected by a fun little bridge that our kids love to race across to see who wins.
Usually first up is a meal at Border Grill. Happy Hour is pretty hard to beat - excellent options for grown-ups and kids alike, wait staff and management are delightful, and parking is validated (or, if you're feeling really adventurous, take the Metro - up the cool factor with the kids). Can't go wrong with kids bean and cheese tacos, poblano quesadillas & chopped salad for parents, and creative cocktails (with or w/o alcohol) like minty lime cooler or pomegranate lemonade.
Once our little ones have filled their tummies, run around and charmed the employees, gotten multiple tours of the kitchen, and used bathrooms where "you don't have to press the button for the soap, it just comes out automatically," we say our goodbyes, zip up a quick escalator (or elevator) and over the bridge that spans Figueroa, and land on the grassy area at the base of Bonaventure Hotel.
There the kids run their fannies off, plop down on their backs to take in impressive glass pneumatic-tube-like elevators that glide up and down (verrry Blade Runner-esque) the hotel's shiny exterior, and chat with the guys washing sidewalks with their super cool, ginormous water machines until they're almost too out of breath to talk.
Last but not least, we and our tuckered tikes mosey into the hotel and hop onto the elevators, which could be a ride at Disneyland for all they care. We go up and down a few times - as much as my motion sick stomach can take - and it is utterly thrilling. Honestly, the views are pretty awesome. On a clear day, you could definitely see the ocean.
Give this a whirl some day. You won't be disappointed!
Usually first up is a meal at Border Grill. Happy Hour is pretty hard to beat - excellent options for grown-ups and kids alike, wait staff and management are delightful, and parking is validated (or, if you're feeling really adventurous, take the Metro - up the cool factor with the kids). Can't go wrong with kids bean and cheese tacos, poblano quesadillas & chopped salad for parents, and creative cocktails (with or w/o alcohol) like minty lime cooler or pomegranate lemonade.
Once our little ones have filled their tummies, run around and charmed the employees, gotten multiple tours of the kitchen, and used bathrooms where "you don't have to press the button for the soap, it just comes out automatically," we say our goodbyes, zip up a quick escalator (or elevator) and over the bridge that spans Figueroa, and land on the grassy area at the base of Bonaventure Hotel.
Last but not least, we and our tuckered tikes mosey into the hotel and hop onto the elevators, which could be a ride at Disneyland for all they care. We go up and down a few times - as much as my motion sick stomach can take - and it is utterly thrilling. Honestly, the views are pretty awesome. On a clear day, you could definitely see the ocean.
Give this a whirl some day. You won't be disappointed!
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Need something to do with the kids this weekend?
There's no shortage of interesting, fun, cultural and seasonal stuff to do around town - from ghost trains to spider pavilions, and everything in between! Feast your eyes on this hefty list and find the perfect event for you and your family. Enjoy!
Friday, October 21
Pomona: Cal Poly Pomona Pumpkin Patch (through 10/31), 10-5
Moorpark, Underwood Family Farms: Fall Harvest Festival (through 10/31), 9-6
Mission Hills, Forneris Farms: Fall Harvest Festival (through 10/31), weekends: 9-5, weekdays: 2-5
Los Angeles, LACMA: Storytelling, 2:00 - WITH NEXGEN MEMBERSHIP, MUSEUM ADMISSION FOR CHILD & GROWNUP IS FREE!
Santa Ana, Discovery Science Center: Bug Invasion 2 (through 10/31), 10-5
Woodland Hills: Winter Ice Rink Opens! (through 2/5/12) hours vary
Highland Park, La Casita Verde Preschool: Magical Halloween Party, 6-8 pm
Griffith Park: LA Live Steamers Ghost Train (and on 10/22 & 10/23, 10/28-31) 7-10 pm
Saturday, October 22
Los Angeles, Natural History Museum: Spider Pavilion (through 11/6), 10-5, Flashlight Tour: 5-8:30
Long Beach, Aquarium of the Pacific: Scarium of the Pacific (and on 10/23), 9-5
Pasadena, Kidspace: Pumpkin Festival (and on 10/23), 9:30-5
Los Angeles, Getty Center: Pacific Standard Time Family Festival, 10-6
Hollywood, Hollywood Forever Cemetery: Dia De Los Muertos, Kids' Art Center, 12-4
Los Angeles, Skirball Cultural Center: Dig It! Archaeology Adventures (Sunday too), 10-5
Downtown LA, Disney Concert Hall Children's Amphitheatre: World City: Los Centzontles & Facto Teatro, 11:00 am
Westchester: Halloween Town Fair, 11-5
Los Angeles, Vista Hermosa Park (an un-discovered slice of heaven right near downtown LA): Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" (Sunday too) 1-3
La Canada Flintridge, Descanso Gardens: Harvest Festival, 10:30-3
Echo Park, Echo Parenting & Education Center: Pumpkins for Peace, 4:00 pm
Sunday, October 23
Los Angeles, Kadampa Meditation Center: Kids Meditation Class, 9:30-11
Larchmont: Family Fair, 12-5
Los Angeles, Skirball Cultural Center: Spellbinding Sundays, 12-2
CHECK LISTINGS ABOVE. SOME EVENTS RUN THROUGH THE ENTIRE WEEKEND.
Friday, October 21
Pomona: Cal Poly Pomona Pumpkin Patch (through 10/31), 10-5
Moorpark, Underwood Family Farms: Fall Harvest Festival (through 10/31), 9-6
Mission Hills, Forneris Farms: Fall Harvest Festival (through 10/31), weekends: 9-5, weekdays: 2-5
Los Angeles, LACMA: Storytelling, 2:00 - WITH NEXGEN MEMBERSHIP, MUSEUM ADMISSION FOR CHILD & GROWNUP IS FREE!
Santa Ana, Discovery Science Center: Bug Invasion 2 (through 10/31), 10-5
Woodland Hills: Winter Ice Rink Opens! (through 2/5/12) hours vary
Highland Park, La Casita Verde Preschool: Magical Halloween Party, 6-8 pm
Griffith Park: LA Live Steamers Ghost Train (and on 10/22 & 10/23, 10/28-31) 7-10 pm
Saturday, October 22
Los Angeles, Natural History Museum: Spider Pavilion (through 11/6), 10-5, Flashlight Tour: 5-8:30
Long Beach, Aquarium of the Pacific: Scarium of the Pacific (and on 10/23), 9-5
Pasadena, Kidspace: Pumpkin Festival (and on 10/23), 9:30-5
Los Angeles, Getty Center: Pacific Standard Time Family Festival, 10-6
Hollywood, Hollywood Forever Cemetery: Dia De Los Muertos, Kids' Art Center, 12-4
Los Angeles, Skirball Cultural Center: Dig It! Archaeology Adventures (Sunday too), 10-5
Downtown LA, Disney Concert Hall Children's Amphitheatre: World City: Los Centzontles & Facto Teatro, 11:00 am
Westchester: Halloween Town Fair, 11-5
Los Angeles, Vista Hermosa Park (an un-discovered slice of heaven right near downtown LA): Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" (Sunday too) 1-3
La Canada Flintridge, Descanso Gardens: Harvest Festival, 10:30-3
Echo Park, Echo Parenting & Education Center: Pumpkins for Peace, 4:00 pm
Sunday, October 23
Los Angeles, Kadampa Meditation Center: Kids Meditation Class, 9:30-11
Larchmont: Family Fair, 12-5
Los Angeles, Skirball Cultural Center: Spellbinding Sundays, 12-2
CHECK LISTINGS ABOVE. SOME EVENTS RUN THROUGH THE ENTIRE WEEKEND.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
A Grand Little Playground Downtown
Right in the heart of LA's downtown concrete jungle of high-rise office buildings and apartments, bustling city streets and general city chaos lies a sweet little fenced-in, clean, sand-free playground.
It's within the boundaries of Grand Hope Park, across from FIDM's (Fashion Institute of Design & Management) Los Angeles campus, and located 3 blocks from the 7th and Figueroa Metro stop on the red line.
Here's what mama friend L has to say about the playground, which she and her son have come to know very well:
"This is the most ethnically diverse playground I have been to in LA. Even better, the parents are really interesting. Many are expats from all over who moved into downtown for one reason or another. And they are friendly! One tough thing about visiting Grand Hope playground is the parking. Meters are $3/hour - and that's if you can find one. However, directly across the street is Ralphs supermarket, which offers a 90-minute validation - no purchase required. It has a huge deli and prepared food section - helpful for that last-minute snack or lunch. It's not exactly health food but acceptable in a pinch. Grand Hope also has a huge open grassy area plus a fountain/water feature; kids always seem to love those. I am currently investigating kid-friendly restaurants within close proximity - will report back."
It's within the boundaries of Grand Hope Park, across from FIDM's (Fashion Institute of Design & Management) Los Angeles campus, and located 3 blocks from the 7th and Figueroa Metro stop on the red line.
Here's what mama friend L has to say about the playground, which she and her son have come to know very well:
"This is the most ethnically diverse playground I have been to in LA. Even better, the parents are really interesting. Many are expats from all over who moved into downtown for one reason or another. And they are friendly! One tough thing about visiting Grand Hope playground is the parking. Meters are $3/hour - and that's if you can find one. However, directly across the street is Ralphs supermarket, which offers a 90-minute validation - no purchase required. It has a huge deli and prepared food section - helpful for that last-minute snack or lunch. It's not exactly health food but acceptable in a pinch. Grand Hope also has a huge open grassy area plus a fountain/water feature; kids always seem to love those. I am currently investigating kid-friendly restaurants within close proximity - will report back."
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| nice playground equipment and spongey ground |
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| cute riding toys |
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