Family Day At Yale!

YALE UNIVERSITY ART MUSEUMS HOST A SPECIAL DAY FOR FAMILIES
Two Museums, Twice the Fun

WHAT
The Yale University Art Gallery and the Yale Center for British Art invites the public to a special Family Day

WHEN
Sunday, December 6, 1:00-3:30 PM

WHERE
Yale University Art Gallery
1111 Chapel Street, New Haven, CT 06511
203.432.0600
Artgallery.yale.edu

And

Yale Center for British Art
1080 Chapel Street
New Haven, CT 06511
203.432.2800
Ycba.yale.edu

DESCRIPTION
The Yale University Art Gallery and the Yale Center for British Art invites families to a special day to participate in art-making activities, storytelling, and tours for children ages 4-10. Light refreshments will be served.

WHO
Everyone is invited; activities are aimed toward young children and families. FREE

Free Thursday Evening At Stepping Stones!

Thursday, November 19th
Get Into It! FREE -- The Road to Healthyville!
Children learn how food gives their bodies energy to be active and grow strong. Through hands-on interactive games, children will learn about the different food groups and building a healthy meal. Activities include Growing up Fit and Healthy story time, playing the Fruits and Vegetables Matching Game and building a skeleton. Sponsored by GE Capital Real Estate. Enjoy FREE admission to Stepping Stones Museum from 5:00-8:00.

¡Fiesta Latina!

¡Fiesta Latina! – A Celebration of Latin American Cultures
Saturday, March 14
10:00 am to 4:00 pm
at the YALE PEABODY MUSEUM

Presented with Junta for Progressive Action, Inc.
Free Admission

Join us for our seventh annual celebration of Latin American cultures! We’ll enjoy performances of traditional and contemporary Latin American music and dance, along with games, crafts, storytelling, a scavenger hunt and face painting for the whole family. Salsa lessons too!

Performances:

11:15 Los Melodicos
12:15 Las Estampas- Mexican Dance Group
1:00 Alisa’s House of Salsa- Salsa dance lessons!
2:00 Guakiplena by Guakía, Inc. -Salsa Tropical music
3:00 Generación Latina Virgen del Cisne–Ecuadorian Dance Group

Sponsored by: International Association of New Haven www.peabody.yale.edu/events/

Fan Mail

We'd just like to take a minute to thank those of you who has sent messages saying how much your like our little blog. We're really trying to build it up and your comments and suggestions help tremendously!

We received an interesting email today from Kidcity that we'd like to share with you.

I'm writing from Kidcity to say...nice blog!

Please let your readers know that Kidcity is open for free once a month on the third Thursday evening from 5 to 7 pm. If they don't know Middletown, I'd recommend that parents might enjoy combining their playtime with a visit to a local restaurant -- here are some quick and cheap and delicious suggestions:
- Tacos at Iguanas Ranas Taqueria
- Pho Mai Vietnamese Noodle Shop
- if you don't mind driving a few miles, Udupi Bhavan for fabulous Indian.

These are all kid-friendly and low-key.

Hope you come play soon.

Thanks, Kid City! You know, the whole point of this blog is to pass on useful information for New Haven area parents, and we think one of the best pieces of information we can pass on is this: Kid City Rocks! They truly do. All of us New Haven Kids Blog contributors have memberships because it is so much fun for kids and adults of all ages. If you haven't already--check it out!

For a reminder about membership information for the children's museums in the area, please click here.

Free Admission!

Free admission to Stepping Stones tomorrow evening!
Thursday, November 20th, 5:00-8:00 pm

Visit their website or call (203) 899-0606 for more information.

Rainy Days...

Let's face it--no one loathes a rainy day more than a kid. The weight of this fact couldn't be more obvious as I look at the weather outside and then over to my toddler, hurling his toys across the room and yelling "boom!" as they hit the ground. This, of course, only when he isn't turning on and off the television, begging "Elmo." (I know...I'm so ashamed).

So what do we do with these munchkins on these rainy, cold days? Here are some ideas:

Check out our list of children's museums to the right of this post. And here is a tip: If you pay the $100 for a year-long reciprocal membership at Kid City, Lutz, Stepping Stones, CMSC, Imagine Nation, and West Hartford , you get into all six! (Please note that the Stepping Stones membership is actually $175 and West Hartford is $125, so you may think joining at one of the others is the better deal).

Did you know that some of the play set stores have open play times? Jungle Jim's in Orange and Timbergyms in Newington cost $5, for example.

We are all eagerly awaiting someone to open an indoor playspace in New Haven (hint hint, budding entrepreneurs out there), but in the meantime, there are several outside of the Elm City limits. Playtime Village in Monroe, Stay and Play in Old Saybrook, Coco Key indoor water park in Waterbury, to name a few.

Let us never underestimate the power of Ikea. The store's Smaland (for kids over 37 inches tall and potty-trained) and even the plain old toy section are enough to keep these blogger moms' kids happy for hours. Seriously...hours.

Okay people--it's your turn. Leave comments with the names of places I've forgotten!