Family Fun This Weekend

After a brief winter dry spell, the Rochester area is once again brimming with fun activities for the family. Here is your guide to fun for this weekend.

First, "beware the Ides of March," on Friday, March 15. A fortune teller gave this warning to Julius Caesar, but he was not cautious enough. Caesar was stabbed by Marcus Brutus on the Ides of March - March 15 - in 44 B.C. So maybe this story isn't one for the kiddos, but you can go on a Shakespeare-related tangent and watch "Gnomeo & Juliet" together for a Family Movie Night instead. Yes, it's a stretch.

Saturday, March 16 is Everything You Do Is Right Day. You get the picture - it's going to be a perfect day because everything you do is right. Need some reassurance? Then just listen to a pep talk from Kid President; you'll soon be on the right track.

Of course, Sunday, March 17 is Saint Patrick's Day. Bake Irish Soda Bread, make St. Patty's Day crafts, and cook something with Guiness for dinner (I think I'm going to try The Beeroness' Mushroom, Stout, & Goat Cheese Pot Pie or Oh My Veggies' Vegetarian Irish Stew, or maybe both).


ONGOING
  
Race: Are We So Different?
Daily through Sunday, April 28, 2013
Rochester Museum & Science Center, 657 East Avenue, Rochester, NY
Explore the stories of race from biological, cultural, and historical points of view. This new exhibit features hands-on activities, 3-D animation, and more. Included with regular museum admission.

LEGO Travel Adventure
Daily through May 12, 2013
National Museum of Play at The Strong, One Manhattan Square, Rochester, NY
Hands-on LEGO and DUPLO building stations, racing ramps, tons of LEGO displays by LEGO Master Builders, and even a spot to take a photo of your own creation and email it to yourself or friends and family. Included with regular museum admission. Check out the ROCmomma review here.

FRIDAY
Kango St. Patrick's Day Party
Friday, March 15 from 4 - 8:00 p.m.
Kango Play Center, 1565 Jefferson Road, #180, Rochester, NY
Enjoy a Leprechaun Hunt, St. Patrick's Day projects, win gold coins, roller skate, play in the bounce house and climbing structure, and more. The Kango St. Patrick's Day Party is $1 in addition to regular admission ($10 total); there is never a charge for adults. Be sure to wear socks.

Game Night
Friday, March 15 from 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. (repeats on Fridays through June 14, 2013)
ArtsROC, 3462 Monroe Avenue, Pittsford, NY
Kids ages 5-12 can enjoy movies, Wii, Xbox, Minecraft, tons of LEGOs, and a pizza party for $25 at ArtsROC. Call (585) 218-9125 or email info@artsroc.net for more information. Or click here to register.

Free Family Night
Friday, March 15 from 5:30 - 9:00 p.m.
YMCA- Southeast, 111 East Jefferson Road, Pittsford, NY
The Adventure Center is open until 9 p.m. (remember your socks!), enjoy pizza in the Lobby at 5:45 p.m until it runs out ($1/slice), play in the Gym from 6-8 p.m. and enjoy an Ice Cream Social, and swim in the pool until 9 p.m. Free and open to the community. If you are interested in enrolling your child in nursery school at the Y, the Nursery School Staff will be available at the Ice Cream Social to share about the program.

SATURDAY

Critter Challenge
Saturday, March 16 from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Seneca Park Zoo, 2222 St. Paul Street, Rochester, NY
Try some fun activities that will provide a better understanding of what some species do in order to survive. Find out how your senses compare to an animal's at stations located throughout the zoo's buildings. Included with zoo admission.

Cool Kids! at GCC presents: The Magic Guy
Saturday, March 16 at 10 a.m.
Genesee Community College, 1 College Road, Batavia, NY
Don't miss The Magic Guy, Chris Wilkinson, and his unique blend of slapstick fun, silliness, aduience interaction, and magic. Open to all ages; admission is free.

Rochester's St. Patrick's Day Parade and Celtic Family Faire
Saturday, March 16: Parade at 12:30 p.m.; Faire from 11 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Main Street, Rochester, NY
The parade runs down East Avenue, beginning at Alexander Street, and continues down Main Street, ending at Plymouth Avenue. Check out the parade web site for parking information and other details, and be sure to check out ROCmomma's parade review with tips for attending with kids.
The Celtic Family Faire is held on the second floor of the Radisson Hotel at 120 East Main Street, Rochester. Enjoy Celtic music and dance, games, storytelling, and more.


Family Features: Bolt
Saturday, March 16 from 2 - 4:00 p.m.
Lollypop Farm, 99 Victor Road, Fairport, NY
Enjoy a free fun family flick! Doors open at 1:30 p.m. and a brief humane education lesson will begin at 2 p.m. to kick off the movie. ("Bolt" is rated PG) No registration necessary. Admission is free, however donation to help homeless animals are greatly appreciated. Some food and beverages will be available for purchase.


Open Gym & Extreme Sports Practice Night
Saturday, March 16 at 6:30 p.m. (repeats Saturdays through May 25)
Sports Academy of Victor, 6385 Route 96, Victor, NY
Have fun with mats, sports equipment, tumble track, foam pit, turf field, batting cages, spring floor, and inflatables. Instructors are available to help. For ages 6 and up; cost is $10.

SATURDAY-SUNDAY 

Maple Weekend

Saturday, March 16 - Sunday, March 17 and Saturday, March 23 - Sunday, March 24, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Various Locations Throughout New York State (use the zip code search to find a location near you)

Enjoy a pancake breakfast, or just find out how maple syrup gets from a tree to your table, at one of the many Maple Weekend celebrations in New York. Several locations also have activities for kids, such as  Genesee Country Village & Museum. Check out ROCmomma's review of Maple Weekend 2012 here.

Meet Mouse at Literature Live

Saturday, March 16 from 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. and Sunday, March 17 from 1 - 5 p.m.

National Museum of Play at The Strong, One Manhattan Square, Rochester, NY

Meet Mouse from Laura Numeroff's If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. Don't forget your camera! Included with regular museum admission.

SUNDAY

Free Youth Admission Day
Sunday, March 17 from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Seneca Park Zoo, 2222 St. Paul Street, Rochester, NY
Receive one free youth admission with the purchase of one adult admission at the Seneca Park Zoo.


Family Fun Craft Day
Sunday, March 17 from 1:30 - 4:30 p.m.
Rochester Public Library (Central Library), 115 South Avenue, Rochester, NY
Families are invited to come to the Children's Center of the Central Library to create a shamrock wreath for St. Patrick's Day. This program is free, so bring the whole family.

Have a great weekend! As always, thanks for reading.

May your thoughts be as glad as the shamrocks. 

May your heart be as light as a song. 

May each day bring you bright, happy hours. 

That stay with you all the year long.

48 Simple Ways to Beat Boredom This Winter

Happy New Year! Hopefully your 2013 is off to a fabulous start!

Today was the first day back to work and back to school after some much-needed time off. However, I think we got too accustomed to being lazy. We traveled to visit family for the beginning of winter break, and then spent the last couple of days in pajamas and building Lego sets. As 11 a.m. rolled around, I found myself scrambling to get the kids dressed and fed before my oldest had to get on the bus for Kindergarten.

Yikes.

It was way too easy to stay in pajamas, skip getting to the Y for  a workout, and keep the TV on today. To be fair, the kids got a bunch of new toys for Christmas and they were having fun playing with them. But we can't do this every morning. So I decided to be proactive and make a list of fun things and put together a Boredom-Busting, Shake-Things-Up, Pick-Some-Fun activity box.

Step 1: Make a list of all the indoor activities you would be able to do in your home. I included board games and craft kits that we have, as well as toys that we have available.

Step 2: Write them down on slips of paper and place the slips in a container (check your recycling bin for a large jar, a shoe box, etc.). The contents of our snowman kit are currently outfitting a frosty friend on our lawn, so I used the empty container for our activities.

Step 3: Turn off the TV and have kids take turns picking out activities to do together.

Yes, it's that easy. Here is the list I used; feel free to customize it to suit your needs, what you have available, and what your kids enjoy.

• Dance party
• Paper airplane races
• Simon Says
• Cards n' Motion - grab a deck of cards; assign an activity for each suit (hearts = marching, diamonds = crawling, spades = jumping jacks, clubs = shake/wiggle); each player takes turns picking a card and doing the motion. For example, if a player picks the 8 of spades, he or she does 8 jumping jacks. Number cards are face value, ace = 1, jack = 11, queen = 12, king = 13.
• Car races - with toy cars.
• Fashion Show - even boys like to dress up; this is a great use of old Halloween costumes.
• Obstacle course - set up a few household items for kids to go over, under, and through.
• Play catch - roll up a sock and have fun tossing it around.
• Puppet show
• The Rabbit Hole - put throw pillows on the floor; all players are bunnies hopping through the garden; if you touch a pillow, you fall down the rabbit hole.
• Wild Things - take turns calling out animals; all players make that animal's sound and act like that animal.
• Bullseye bowling - make a target on the floor out of masking tape; players take turns rolling a small ball and try to get closest to the bullseye.
• Puzzles
• Play Twister (or another game in your collection)
• Indoor ice skating - attach sheets of wax paper to your feet using rubber bands, and have fun "ice skating" on the carpet. Just BE CAREFUL; this is a slippery activity.
• Craft Kit (we have a ton of these in the closet; I pick them up at Michael's and then forget about them)
• Make a collage - old magazines, safety scissors, glue sticks, and paper. Or check the recycling bin for a cereal box as a 3-dimensional base for a collage.
• Balance beam - just some masking tape on the floor, and have kids pretend they are walking along a balance beam. Or walking the plank!
• Feather races - mark a starting line and finish line on the floor with masking tape. Each player puts a craft-feather (or wad of tissue paper) on the start line. On "Go!," players blow on their feather and try to get it to cross the finish line first.
• Write a letter to a Disney character - Send to Walt Disney World Communications, PO Box 10040, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830-0040. Your kids will receive an autographed picture from the character!
• Guard the Eggs - make a large rectangle on the floor with masking tape; place a few balls in the rectangle; choose one player to be the guardian and "protect" the eggs; all other players try to steal the eggs; if a player gets tagged by the guardian while his or her hand is within the rectangle, that player becomes the new guardian.
• Build a fort - some chairs and blankets are all you really need.
• Blow ice bubbles outside - if it's cold enough, the bubbles will freeze in the air. All right, so there's one outdoor activity. But this is something we can do quickly, even from the garage with the door open.
• Make a card and send it to someone special
• Write a story - ask your kids who is in the story and what they will do; help them write it down and ask them to illustrate the story as well.
• Dominoes - if you don't have actual dominoes, try setting up books or DVD cases and then knock them down.
• Tic Tac Toss - make a tic tac toe board on the floor with masking tape; use two different colored sets of bean bags (or small stuffed animals, or balled-up socks) to play.
• Band Practice/ Marching Band - anything that rattles, whistles, or can be hit with a wooden spoon is fair game. Play some music together, then become a marching band and perform all around the house.
• Craft time - cover the table, pick a few art supplies, and see what your kids create.
• Scavenger hunt - pick 10 cars or Monster High dolls or blocks; one person hides them then the other players try to find them; the person who finds the most is the next to hide items.
• Play-Doh
• Board game
• Giant Busy Box - another craft kit we have on hand.
• Legos
• Coloring books
• Make a sock puppet
• Make salt dough shapes - If you have salt, flour, and water, you can make these. There are lots of recipes out there such as this one; grab some cookie cutters, let them dry, then paint them. Before letting them dry, you can punch a hole with the end of a drinking straw and then string them up later.
• Air hockey (or another game in your home)
• Hop scotch - using masking tape on the floor.
• Balloon volleyball
• Xbox Kinect game - yes, it's a video game, but at least it requires movement.
• Paint a picture (water colors, finger paints, whatever you have)
• Play freeze dance
• Make pictures for the grandparents
• Make pictures for the aunts and uncles
• Make seasonal decorations - For example, January = snowmen & snowflakes; February = hearts; March = shamrocks and eggs; April = rainbows, umbrellas; May = flowers; June = outdoor-themed items; July = American flags; August = beach items; September = back-to-school-themed items; October = pumpkins; November = leaves; December = Christmas trees & candy canes. Obviously you'll need to tweak this according to your religion and cultural background.
• Blow bubbles in the house! - into the bath tub, of course. This doesn't have to be a bath time activity. Leave the tub empty, and just let the kids blow bubbles into the tub to avoid a slippery, sticky mess in other areas of your home.
• "Almost" Yahtzee - grab some dice and a pencil and paper for each player. Write the possible sums of the dice on each piece of paper (2 dice = numbers 2-12, 3 dice = numbers 3-36, 4 dice = numbers 4-48). Each player takes a turn rolling all the dice, adding the sum, and crossing that number off their list. 

There is a mix of active games, creative activities, and quiet games listed. I left out "making cookies" simply because I don't want a batch of cookies in the house. We ate way too much over the holidays, and I don't need anything tempting my will power. Completely selfish, but necessary right now.

I plan on keeping the "used" activity slips in a bag. Once we've emptied the jar, I can just throw them all back in to repeat this cycle...at least until the temperature rises a bit so we can play outside comfortably again.

I hope this inspires you to do some creative activities with your kids. Or grandkids. Or the kids you babysit. Just have fun! What is your favorite indoor activity with the kids? Post a Comment and let us know. As always, thanks for reading.