Archives for May 2013

Looking for things to do with the family this weekend?  If you live near Tacoma, Auburn, Lacey, Puyallup, Gig Harbor, Olympia-or somewhere in between-I’ve got you covered!

South Sound family fun is right here!

Headed elsewhere? For Seattle or Portland area fun you’ll want to check out the fantastic list over at ThriftyNWmom compiled by the newest member of their frugal finding team, Annaliese of Grays Harbor Deals!

Friday

Friends of the Steilacoom Library used book sale

See the calendar for more Friday fun!

Saturday

All Over

National Trails Day-Free admission to state parks Saturday; See this post for some opportunities to volunteer

Kids’ Club at Michael’s Kids can stop in between 10-2 to do a coloring project for, “National Drawing Day,”  It’s 2.00 per child/sessions start on the half hour

Home Depot Kids’ Club  Advance registration now required for these popular, free programs

South King County

The 10.00 a bag sale continues at Once Sold Tales in Kent.  The owner is hoping to work with her landlord to stay open Monday, but Saturday and Sunday are a go!

National Trails Day-Free admission to state parks Saturday; See this post for some opportunities to volunteer

Kids’ fishing event at Steel Lake in Federal Way. Annual event just for junior anglers. 4.00 all equipment provided, but advance registration is required.  I would call to register as their website is really a nightmare. Sorry, Federal Way-just this blogger’s opinion!

 Story Time at the Federal Way Barnes and Noble   Bedtime is Canceled is the title. Time says 1AM. Pretty sure that’s not right……

Water Weekends with HCC Mast at Redondo Every Saturday visit the center for free from 10-2 and get up close with sea critters in their touch tanks

Saturday Story Time at Southcenter Barnes and Noble  11AM

Puyallup/Sumner/Greater Pierce

Father’s Day frame event at Ben Franklin in Bonney Lake  35.00 gets you portraits of the kids with DAD letters in a matt and frame ready for gift giving. 1-3 First come; first served photos next to the frame shop

Block Play at the South Hill Library

Children’s Gardening Program with the Master Gardeners at the WSU extension in Puyallup   1PM  Never been? I have a post with more about this fun children’s program here.

Mother Earth Fair at the Puyallup fair grounds-kids are free, and there are children’s activities. Adult tickets are very pricey, but if you’re interested in organic living, urban farming, or gardening it may be worth it to you.

Block Play at the Sumner Library

Tacoma

National Trails Day-Free admission to state parks Saturday; See this post for some opportunities to volunteer

Father’s Day event at Learning Sprout Toys  Make a free craft for dad 10AM-4PM

Launch into Literacy at the Children’s Museum of Tacoma Special story times; sign up for library summer reading programs; meet Rhubarb from the Rainiers and Daffodil princesses. Free, drop-in event; Museum admission is pay-as-you-will for the next 4 years or so thanks to the generosity of Key Bank. Also on Sunday

Duck Daze in University Place  Street parade followed by Treasure in the Park sale, open house at the fire department, and more fun!

Got a brave kid? The spraygrounds are On in Tacoma! Free, open 10AM-8PM

Most Farmers’ Markets have opened! Has yours? Check here.

Crafts of the Past at Fort Nisqually  Each weekend, artisans demonstrate a craft that would been used in the 1880s. While not a total bargain, a trip to the Fort is fun for most children and a good resource if you have one doing some kind of report. Scrimshaw is today.  Also Sunday

Pierce College Science Dome Shows Special shows for children 3-8 every Saturday at 2PM in the amazing new dome theater at their Lakewood campus. Tickets just 3.00; adults free! Link also has info. on other public shows. General audience at 3:15-it’s Black Holes right now.

Visit our new sponsors at City Goat Farm and Petting Zoo in Spanaway Here is their fb page . I’ve had sooooo many nice notes from readers who have loved it here. If you do, too, be sure to ask about their season pass! 10-6 today. Dress for mud and meeting animal friends.

Lacey/Olympia/JBLM

National Trails Day-Free admission to state parks Saturday; See this post for some opportunities to volunteer

Duck Dash and Fun Fair in Lacey  Tumwater Falls Park  fun begins at 11AM with bounce houses and kids’ zone;rubber duck drop into the Deschutes River at 4PM; winning ducks win prizes-you can purchase one at participating retailers or day-of, while supplies last for 5.00.

Open Farm Day at Nature Nurture farm 5.00 donation 10AM-2PM

Saturday storytime at the Olympia Barnes and Noble  1PM  Every Saturday

Shellfish farming at the LOTT Wet Science Center  Center is free and open to the public every weekend. Today’s program at 2PM is on shellfish farming. See oysters, clams, and other critters. Coloring books

Olympia Family Theater presents Cinder Edna  3 0r 6  also Sunday

Science Carnival at Evergreen State College Free admission; variety of science experiments and demonstrations

Gig Harbor/Kitsap

National Trails Day-Free admission to state parks Saturday; See this post for some opportunities to volunteer

Maritime Gig Festival  Two big days of fun-pirates, parade, children’s activities, vendors

Kids’ Day at the Kitsap County Fairgrounds

The farmer’s market at Uptown is open! From 9-10 every Saturday there is free entertainment for kids.

Story Time at the Kitsap Barnes and Noble   11AM New Mo Wilems book

Kitsap area readers may also like to get the free newsletter from Macaroni Kid Kitsap

Sunday

Auburn Valley YMCA Princess Event  Open to non-members  princess appearance; snacks  call to check on space availability

Children’s Health Fair in Olympia Free children’s concert, admission to the HOCM, and bike helmets while supplies last. Free but registration is required.

Maritime Gig Festival  continues in Gig Harbor children’s activities, vendors, Sunday farmer’s market, storytelling

Crafts of the Past at Fort Nisqually  Each weekend, artisans demonstrate a craft that would been used in the 1880s. While not a total bargain, a trip to the Fort is fun for most children and a good resource if you have one doing some kind of report. Demonstration of primitive fire starting methods today

Visit our new sponsors at City Goat Farm and Petting Zoo in Spanaway Here is their fb page .

Farmer’s Market at South Tacoma’s STAR Center

Know something great I missed? Want publicity for your group or advertising for your family friendly business?  Just let me know!

New here? I’d love to have you use the buttons at the top to join us on the Facebook page, follow me on Twitter, or get my posts in your feed or reader. I also Love to hear about readers sharing this page with their pals and mentioning it at the places they visit, so thank you So Much for all of that!

June 1st is National Trails Day, which means Free admission to Washington State Parks  (sadly, not National Parks) And lots of volunteer opportunities at parks and trails near you.

If you’d like to help out, here are a few efforts that looked kid friendly to me.

Point Defiance Park, Tacoma Trail work; groups of 3 or more asked to register in advance

Priest Point Park, Olympia  Trail work; light refreshments and a coupon for a free BBQ lunch for registered participants. You’re asked to call to sign up.

Cougar Mountain-Renton/Issaquah  Family work party

Or, maybe you’d like to, “Celebrate,” by getting outside!

Yeah, I get that the weather isn’t looking too promising, but if you wait for that, it will be August. Of course, you can just sit tight for Friday morning’s list, which will have plenty of indoor and outdoor fun.

Btw, I have lots of future posts planned on great South Sound hikes and walks. If you’d like to get a jump start on planning some of your adventures, I always recommend Joan Burton’s excellent book, Best Hikes With Kids. The Washington Trails Association is also an excellent resource. If you’d like to check out Joan’s book, you can click on the pic below to see it at Amazon (the link is my affiliate).  What’s your favorite way to get outdoors with the kids?

Calling Gig Harbor, Tacoma, and Kitsap moms and dads! Have you checked out this year’s summer day camp programs for preschoolers  with our awesome sponsors at Gig Harbor’s Discovery Village?  Discovery Village is a children’s museum and preschool, and every time I mention it, readers from all over send in rave reviews. I’ve raved about it, too. Their camps are just for preschoolers, and Amber let me know they do still have spots in most sessions (Don’t wait long, though)!

This year’s list of summer day camps looks way fun. Designed just for young campers 3-6, each session has its own cool theme. Choices range from Arctic Explorers to Cooking Camp, with everything in between. Honestly, I think you’ll have a hard time choosing! There is also plenty of time to play in their super cool indoor play areas and a light snack, too. I can tell you from personal experience that it is very hard to find quality summer camp programming for younger children, so even though I know it seems early, I’d register for your top choices now (problem solved alert-potty training is Not required if you have a preschooler who hasn’t quite mastered this yet).

Sessions run from 9AM-1PM and are very reasonably priced. The time also includes a supervised lunch period (send one in, or add 4.00 more to have one provided), and the ratio is an awesome max of 7 campers per adult.

You can visit the Discovery Village website to learn more about their Summer Camps or just stop by or call (253) 858-4835 for more information and to get your lucky kiddo all signed up! If you’d like to meet some of the teachers and staff, they’ll be on hand at the upcoming Maritime Festival on June 1st. What a great opportunity!

Disclosure: The opinions in this sponsored post are my own! When you call Discovery Village, tell their friendly staff you saw this on Sounds Fun Mom, won’t you? Thanks!

Update:Today, Monday the 3rd, is the last day for the store.  10.00 a bag sale continues from 9-5.

I thought I’d give you a little update on the closing sale at Once Sold Tales in Kent. I’ve written about this fun, used book spot before, but Jen from ThriftyNorthwestMom got all the scoop on the closing. The silver lining is that they’re going out with a pretty amazing sale.

Kids books are just 1.50 a pound, Plus kids can get any 5 for free (This is a program they’ve done for a while now. To be totally honest, I forgot about it, and we just paid for ours, but at a 1.50 a pound I was fine with it)! Other titles are 1.00 a piece for paperbacks, 2.00 for hardcovers, or you can go Tuesday-Thursday and get ’em for 10.00 a bag.

Now, this is one crazy place to shop. There are two big Warehouses crammed floor to ceiling with books, and they’re not organized by alphabet, or subject, or really any system you could figure out by yourself.

So, you have a few choices

-Go and browse and discover titles that appeal to you. They have Half a Million titles left, so your odds are good!

-Look up titles you’re interested in either before you go on their website, or when you get to the store on one of several computers. Once you have the sku, you can find the books on the shelves, or someone can help you. You can also try emailing your list in advance, and the staff Might have time to pull them for you. We looked up the books my oldest was after in the store, and a very nice girl walked us around the warehouse to find them. Now, they aren’t updating their web site right now, so it’s possible you’ll get some skus on your list that will turn out not to be on the shelves when you get there, but again-there are half a million books to choose from!

If there is one section going fast, it’s the small children’s area as you come in. There are still lots of popular series titles available-Little House, Boxcar Children, Goose Bumps….but individual titles were getting pretty picked over. My older son’s books all came out of the back warehouse, so at some point they start shelving young adult titles elsewhere. I tried to convey the slightly chaotic situation in the children’s room in the pic below. As you can see, it didn’t bother Henry a bit! But, yeah-this probably not an event for everyone-but I think that’s true of thrifty shopping in general.

Bring your spirit of adventure, and bring some reusable tote bags (they did have boxes available when we were there). Most of all-spread the word to used book lovers you know (This is a Great opportunity for home schoolers)! The sale runs until the 31st, and after that the books get turned to pulp, which just makes my book loving heart a little achy.

If you’d like still more info. on this event, you can read Jen’s post over at ThriftyNorthwestMom and see what she and her girls scored! My boys have already made off with their finds, so no pic of those!

Looking for things to do with the family this weekend?  If you live near Tacoma, Auburn, Lacey, Puyallup, Gig Harbor, Olympia-or somewhere in between-I’ve got you covered!

South Sound family fun is right here!

Headed elsewhere? For Seattle or Portland area fun you’ll want to check out the fantastic list over at ThriftyNWmom compiled by the newest member of their frugal finding team, Annaliese of Grays Harbor Deals!

Friday

Date night with our sponsors at Jump! Gig Harbor  Tell ’em I sent you.

See the calendar for more Friday fun!

Saturday

All Over

Kids’ Club at Michael’s Kids can stop in between 10-2 to craft a “Hero Doll”. It’s 2.00 per child/sessions start on the half hour

South King County

 Hydro Fever 2013 at the Hydroplane Museum in Kent 10AM-4PM  free admission; kids’ model racing

Fancy Nancy Story Time at the Federal Way Barnes and Noble 11AM   Crafts, activities, and stories

Water Weekends with HCC Mast at Redondo Every Saturday visit the center for free from 10-2 and get up close with sea critters in their touch tanks

Store Closing Sale at Once Sold Tales in Kent

Saturday Story Time at Southcenter Barnes and Noble  11AM  Dr. Seuss end-of-school fav, Oh, the Places You’ll Go, today.

Puyallup/Sumner/Greater Pierce

Fun at the Old Cannery in Sumner. Free hot dogs and soda, old-time photos, and Glitterbug the clown. Hint: If you buy a couch, this will be slightly less frugal. Trust me….You might want to check their Facebook page-it’s the most up to date.

A Little Princess at Sumner ManeStage Theater.  2PM and 7PM -one more show on Sunday

Our friends from Bill’s Fishin’ Hole out past Orting let us know they have some fun specials going on at their u-fish pond.

Tacoma

Got a brave kid? The spraygrounds are On in Tacoma! Free, open 10AM-8PM

 Tiptoe Through The Tidepools  Join volunteer naturalists at Tacoma’s Titlow Beach to explore one of this year’s lowest tides. See more on low tide exploration and a link to tide chart here.  11AM

Most Farmers’ Markets have opened! Has yours? Check here.

Crafts of the Past at Fort Nisqually  Each weekend, artisans demonstrate a craft that would been used in the 1880s. While not a total bargain, a trip to the Fort is fun for most children and a good resource if you have one doing some kind of report. Beadwork today, and visitors will get a free, pre-made kit (not sure on ages or quantities; let me know if you go)! Also Sunday

Kids’ Club at the Steilacoom Historical Museum   Last Saturday of every month through September; great for ages 5-10; includes old-time crafts and fun and museum exploration  It’s spinning yarn and weaving today

Pierce College Science Dome Shows Special shows for children 3-8 every Saturday at 2PM in the amazing new dome theater at their Lakewood campus. Tickets just 3.00; adults free! Link also has info. on other public shows. General audience at 3:15-it’s Black Holes right now.

Visit our new sponsors at City Goat Farm and Petting Zoo in Spanaway Here is their fb page . I’ve had sooooo many nice notes from readers who have loved it here. If you do, too, be sure to ask about their season pass! 10-6 today. Dress for mud and meeting animal friends.

Lacey/Olympia/JBLM

Saturday storytime at the Olympia Barnes and Noble  1PM  Every Saturday

Frustrationless Flyers at the LOTT Wet Science Center  Come to the center to make the easiest kite you’ll ever fly!

Olympia Family Theater presents Cinder Edna

Gig Harbor/Kitsap

Gig Harbor Street Scramble  Check in 8:30-9:30 w/ map handout at 10. Free! Explore the city as you try to find 30 locations in 90 minutes or 3 hours-your choice! Begins at Skansie Brothers Park downtown.

Get Your Feet Wet!  Volunteer naturalists from Harbor Wild Watch will be at area beaches to help you explore some of this year’s lowest tides! Kopachuck or Penrose at 10:30  You will need a Discover Pass. You can also check out their touch tanks at Skansie Park during the street scramble.

The farmer’s market at Uptown is open! From 9-10 every Saturday there is free entertainment for kids.

Meet Curious George at the Kitsap Barnes and Noble   11AM activities and treats, plus the beloved Dr. Seuss story

American Girl Story Time at the Kitsap Barnes and Noble  3PM The 4th Saturday of every month for American Girl fans

 Kitsap Harbor Festival Two big days of family fun at the Port Orchard Marina and downtown Bremerton    KidZone; vehicle displays; live entertainment; vendors

Kitsap area readers may also like to get the free newsletter from Macaroni Kid Kitsap

Sunday

Get Your Feet Wet!  Volunteer naturalists from Harbor Wild Watch will be at area beaches to help you explore some of this year’s lowest tides! Kopachuck or Penrose at 12 or Manchester at 10:30 You will need a Discover Pass for state parks.

Kitsap Harbor Festival  family fun at the Port Orchard Marina and downtown Bremerton    KidZone; vehicle displays; live entertainment; vendors

Fun at the Old Cannery in Sumner. Free hot dogs and soda, old-time photos, and Glitterbug the clown. Hint: If you buy a couch, this will be slightly less frugal. Trust me….You might want to check their Facebook page-it’s the most up to date.

A Little Princess at Sumner ManeStage Theater. 2PM  LAST show!

Crafts of the Past at Fort Nisqually  Each weekend, artisans demonstrate a craft that would been used in the 1880s. While not a total bargain, a trip to the Fort is fun for most children and a good resource if you have one doing some kind of report. Demonstration of primitive fire starting methods today

Valve Cover Races at the LeMay Marymount Event Center   Find a valve cover and add wheels!  See link for contacts and more details. Note: This is the one in Spanaway, Not the downtown Tacoma location.

The museum at Historic Fort Steilacoom is open 1-4 today

Farmer’s Market at South Tacoma’s STAR Center

Monday Memorial Day

Memorial Day Observances

Memorial Day ceremony in Sumner at 10AM

Memorial Day Program in Puyallup at the Pioneer Pavillion 1PM  Musical performances and speakers

Ceremony at Mountain View Funeral Home at 2PM  in the Garden of Honor open to the public, will include military speakers and performances; light food

Here is a link to a pdf with other area Memorial Day observances

Kids Events on Memorial Day

Special Monday public opening at the Children’s Museum in Tacoma

Memorial Day Jump at Pump it Up! in Tacoma

Fun at the Old Cannery in Sumner. Free hot dogs and soda, old-time photos, and Glitterbug the clown. Hint: If you buy a couch, this will be slightly less frugal. Trust me….You might want to check their Facebook page-it’s the most up to date.

Our friends from Bill’s Fishin’ Hole out past Orting let us know they have some fun specials going on at their u-fish pond.

Low tides continue today. Get Your Feet wet program in Gig Harbor, or find a beach near you-here’s my post on how to do that!

If you’d like to do something significant with your kiddos, but you aren’t sure how they’d handle a service, reader CoreyAnn found this  some thoughtful suggestions for things to do with kids on Memorial Day over at Interest-Led Learning.

Know something great I missed? Want publicity for your group or advertising for your family friendly business?  Just let me know!

New here? I’d love to have you use the buttons at the top to join us on the Facebook page, follow me on Twitter, or get my posts in your feed or reader. I also Love to hear about readers sharing this page with their pals and mentioning it at the places they visit, so thank you So Much for all of that!

Lowes has opened registration for their next Build and Grow event.

It’s a Monsters University tie-in .

These fill faster and faster every time, so register now while there are plenty of spaces, and mark your calendar. These are free events, and kids go home with an apron and other fun goodies after building their project!

Are you looking for a great preschool in Bonney Lake? We’re so pleased to have our friends at Concordia Lutheran School back as sponsors this month. Read on to find out about their fun, Christian preschool and how you can visit during their upcoming open house!

Concordia Lutheran Preschool

OPEN HOUSE

Wednesday, May 29

6:00-7:30 p.m.

Looking for a preschool that emphasizes fun, learning, kindergarten readiness, and love for the Lord? Then check out Concordia Lutheran Preschool! Drop in, meet the teachers, and see the classroom!

Concordia Lutheran School offers classes for preschool and pre-kindergarten ages. We welcome families from all denominations and backgrounds. We are located at12407 214th Ave. E. in Bonney Lake.

Concordia is driven by its Christian philosophy, and is committed to providing a nurturing environment for children couched in the love of Christ by treasuring each child’s uniqueness and creating relevant and exciting learning.
Contact: Lynette Neumiller, Director, at 253-229-6782, Director.CLSBL@gmail.com. She’ll be glad to answer any questions you have, or give you a tour! Don’t forget to mark your calendars for the open house event, or like them on Facebook for a reminder. You can also visit their website for more information!

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post with provided text. We love our sponsors here at SFM. When you check out Concordia Lutheran Bonney Lake, be sure to tell ’em you saw this post! Thanks!

Calling Puyallup and Tacoma area party planners! If you’re looking to book a bounce house for your next birthday party, school function, or church bash, you’ll want to check out my new sponsors, All Starz Bounce! Read on for all the scoop from mom and owner, Stephanie!

Our friends at Tahoma Audubon asked me to let you know about their annual youth bird drawing contest.

I know Sounds Fun Mom readers have some of the most creative kids around, so this should appeal to lots of you with artsy nature lovers!

The contest is open to kids in grades 2-7, with three divisions.

Winners get prizes related to art and birding and will be honored at a special reception.

Probably the trickiest part is that entries have to depict one of three specific birds.

Get all the scoop and links to the rest of the rules right here.  If you have younger art lovers, there are fun drop-in activities and camps offered around the South Sound this summer. You can check my summer camp guide for some of those. If you’re near Puyallup, I can’t say enough good things about the classes and camps at the Fred Oldfield Center (This is a really old post, but the info. and links are still good).

You have just until the 29th to enter the Youth Bird Drawing Contest, so don’t wait long (This would be a fun idea for your home school group). Be sure to let us know if your kiddo is a big winner!

All three of my guys were camping Saturday (I’ll let you guess which two were excited about it)!

Look what’s new!

So, I used the time to get in some work on the site, and I wanted to let you know quickly what I’ve been up to, and ask for a little help!

First, I’ve updated the look of the Facebook page. Not terribly exciting, but it’s a fun spot if you haven’t visited lately.

Second, I spent some way too much time on the Sounds Fun Mom Pinterest boards. Wow-what a time suck! I’m excited about the Summer Board, in particular, which I’m using as a parking lot for future adventures and ideas for when the kids tell me they’re bored (this should happen about two hours in, if history is any guide).  If you’re on Pinterest, feel free to check out my boards, and thanks to all of you who have already pinned from Sounds Fun Mom.

I’ve also added a calendar (Woot!). This will replace the weekly events guide I’ve been doing on Sundays. You can find a preview of it over in the sidebar where it says Upcoming Events, and you can see the whole thing by clicking on, “See calendar,” below the preview, or by clicking on the calendar link in the menu bar.

The calendar will NOT replace your big, weekend guide. Those detailed lists of weekend, family events will still be up every Friday morning, and I will not be adding all of those to the calendar. If you’ve come to rely on Sounds Fun Mom to plan your weekend, be assured I have no plans to change that! I do hope the calendar will be a great place to record weekday events, recurring events, and to help those of you who like to plan ahead a bit. And, yes, just as soon as I figure it out, you’ll be able to submit your group’s events directly. Please let all the club organizers and event marketing people you know in on this scoop!

How can you help with any of this? Naturally, I’d love to have your input! Do you like the calendar? Is there something else you’d like to see on the site? Do you use Pinterest to plan events or outings, or is it more your go-to spot for crafts and recipes? What would you like to see more of as we head into the summer? Outings? Deals? Parks? Particular places? Don’t be shy about letting me know!

I’d also love to have some of your photos. I stink at photography-I just do! If you’ve taken bright, action shots at events you found at Sounds Fun Mom, I’d love to use them here at the site. Just email soundsfunmom@gmail.com, and include them as attachments. I can’t pay you, and you grant me permission to use them as I wish. I Am glad to give you credit for them, if you have a blog or business, or you’d just enjoy the shout out!

Phew! I think that’s about it! Thanks, as always, for being a reader, and for helping me grow this site by sharing it with your fun loving friends and family.