Easy Family Activities For the Summer

I am always amazed by my friends’ abilities at scheduling summer camps and activities for their children.   My calendar is a complete mess, I could really use some white out with the activities that are scratched out, rescheduled, cancelled, added, etc.     And I only have two.     But there are two programs I really love because they allow you to commit to a short period of time (only one morning), are ala cart so to speak, are inexpensive, and are family-friendly, meaning I get to participate and spend time with the kiddo and if I need to, the two-year old little brother can join us.

The first program we actually did last year.    It is the Cuyahoga Valley National Park’s Junior Ranger, Jr. program.    I wrote about it here.  Each session is two hours and is $8 per child.

For details on this year’s programs, visit http://www.nps.gov/cuva/forkids/beajuniorranger.htm

The second I just found out about.    It is the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo’s Family Discoveries.  Programs are 90 minutes long and cost $15 per person (Zoo members $10 per person).  Program fee includes admission to Zoo and RainForest.

You can find all of the info on the various programs here:  http://www.clemetzoo.com/education/familydiscoveries/

Are you aware of more programs like this?     If so, please share the info below in the comments section.

Until next time,

Lorelei

Tri-C JazzFest Cleveland’s® “Jazz for Kids”

Tri-C JazzFest Cleveland’s® “Jazz for Kids”

LOCATION:  The Children’s Museum of Cleveland

DATE: Saturday, April 21, 2012

TIME: Two Performances to choose from: 11:00 am or 2:00 pm

TICKET FEE: $5 per person for Children’s Museum Members
$10 per person for Non-Members
Infants 11 months and under are free

(Tickets include admission to one performance and full-day use of all of the Museum’s exhibits. Only those with Jazz for Kids tickets will be admitted to the performances.)

MORE:  This year’s family-friendly event is sure to be the best ever! Now in its sixth year, the “Jazz for Kids” concert is an entertaining and educational experience for families with young children led by pianist and Cleveland native, Joe Hunter and his friends. Enhancing the concert through hands-on interaction with the audience will be early childhood music educator Becky Ogden, guaranteeing that this event will get young minds
involved in and excited about jazz!

(Due to increasing attendance the Museum has decided to limit the number of attendees to ensure the best possible experience for all. Ticket sales have been limited to a total of 200 per performance.)

REGISTRATION: Advance registration is recommended and event tickets are required.

Purchase your tickets in person at the Museum, by calling 216.791.7114

or by clicking on one of the following links:

Buy tickets for the 11:00 am concert

Buy tickets for the 2:00 pm concert

Orchid Mania Lasts One More Week

I am feeling the need to get the toddler out of the house this week if the weather is so warm, and I love taking kids to the Cleveland Botanical Garden, and I absolutely love orchids, so I am hoping to make it to this:

ORCHID MANIA: This Side of Paradise – FINAL WEEK

February 11 – March 25

Tuesdays – Saturdays: 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Sundays: Noon – 5:00 pm • Closed Mondays

Adult: $9.50; Child (3-12): $3
Members, Children 3 and under: FREE

Sophisticated ladies. Speakeasies. Busby Berkeley musicals. The 1920s was a time when America’s preoccupation with opulence, luxury and sensuality matched its limitless spirit of optimism and individual expression.

Sound like a certain exuberant flower you know?

Orchid Mania: This Side of Paradise celebrates those independent spirits of the floral world, orchids, in a setting befitting of Jay Gatsby himself.

Hundreds of bold, fragrant, blooming orchids will be on display throughout the Garden and in the naturalistic setting of the Garden’s Costa Rica Glasshouse.

It’s an occasion for flappers, Phalaenopsis and every other kind of orchid you can imagine.

http://www.cbgarden.org/OrchidMania2012.html

I Love Living in Cleveland

First I must say that I am ashamed that I have not written anything in more than 3 months.   That’s just terrible.   Tonight is one of those rare evenings where I managed to get chores done AND the kids in bed on time, while my hubby is at work, so I get to write.    And apparently, based on an email I had sent myself on February 20th, I’ve been wanting to write about living in Cleveland, or at least, living in Ohio.

I need to begin with an explanation.  Thanks to the hubby’s work, we have been blessed to travel to Hawaii for two weeks each year for the past four years.   While we are there he works in the evenings but we get to enjoy family time together when he isn’t working.   Three years ago I had posted about returning from Hawaii and being grateful to be back in Cleveland and see the big fluffy white snowflakes and just to be home in general.    The PD linked to it and someone made a snarky comment and have since basically felt as though I committed blog suicide here:  https://clevelandmom.wordpress.com/2009/02/23/home-is-where-your-friends-are/.

Well, in February we were back to Hawaii for the hubby’s work.  This time, while we were there, I was fortunate to meet a lovely family who was renting a condo in the same building where we stayed.   She (Indonesian) and her husband (Canadian) had lived in Japan for the past nine years and had just relocated due to work to Honolulu.   They have two awesome little boys who my sons loved to hang out with, and while they all played I had so many wonderful conversations with their mom.   I loved to hear about their search for a home in Hawaii, and their lives back in Japan and everywhere else.  But what got me thinking about writing this, was our discussions regarding the cost of living.

I grew up just on the border of Cleveland, and I feel I should add I apparently grew up “below the poverty line”, though it wasn’t until I was a senior in high school that this was made apparent to me when someone pointed this out.    My mom was a housekeeper in an apartment building and my dad was retired from working for the City of Cleveland.  I grew up in a two-bedroom apartment but we were comfortable.

In Honolulu, the two-bedroom condo where we stayed would cost twice as much as my current house.   It got me thinking, you can’t really afford to be poor and live in Hawaii.   There are a lot of places where you can’t afford to be poor in the US.  In Cleveland, there are so many services, so many opportunities, and the cost of living remains relatively low.  I had no clue I was poor.   So out of curiosity I looked up some cost of living statistics on Hawaii vs. Ohio.   I am sure there is some equation for doing a comparison, but just looking at the numbers to me was interesting:

HAWAII:

Homeownership rate, 2006-2010: 59.3%

Median value of owner-occupied housing units, 2006-2010: $537,400

Per capita money income in past 12 months (2010 dollars) 2006-2010: $28,882

Median household income 2006-2010: $66,420
OHIO:

Homeownership rate, 2006-2010: 69.2%

Median value of owner-occupied housing units, 2006-2010: $136,400

Per capita money income in past 12 months (2010 dollars) 2006-2010: $25,113

Median household income 2006-2010: $47,358

The difference in Median household income is small, particularly when compared to the significant difference in the Median value of owner-occupied housing units.    Money simply buys so much more here, compared not just to Honolulu or Hawaii in general, but to many other metropolitan areas.

Beyond the cost of living, I do love to hear my five year-old tell me all of the things he loves about each season.   And I love all of the things that, when I have the time, I write about that my family and I enjoy doing all around the Cleveland area.

Do you love living in Cleveland?    What do you love about living here?

Until next time,

Lorelei

PS.   I should add that, periodically, I love having a St. Patricks’s Day that allows me to break out the slip-n-slide!  Did you hear there were 500,000 people in Downtown Cleveland on Saturday???

 

“Holiday Cookies” Family Cooking Workshop at The Childrens Museum

“Holiday Cookies”
Family Cooking Workshop

The Children’s Museum of Cleveland

DATE: Sunday, December 18, 2011

TIME: 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm

WORKSHOP FEE: $5.00 per person. (Non-members must pay additional Museum admission of $7.00/person if they wish to play in the Museum exhibits).

MORE: Participate in a family-friendly cooking workshop created especially for kids. During each workshop kids will learn how to create recipes that are easy, delicious and nutritious. Today we inspire your family’s culinary creativity as we prepare our own “Holiday Cookies” from scratch. Recommended for children ages 3 and older.

REGISTRATION: Required. In person at the Museum, by calling 216-791-7114 or register and pay online NOW by clicking here.

Bricks4Kidz LEGO Classroom Opens in Westlake

From their Facebook page:

We are located at 25651 Detroit Road in Westlake, Ohio, next to Houlihan’s! Please call 440-892-0900 or go to the website at www.bricks4kidz.com to sign up for classes, mini camps and Birthday Parties!!!!!!! We have Camps during the Holiday for $100 for 1/2 day and $175 for full day for four days! You can’t beat the price! Clases start next week on Monday’s, Wednesday’s and Thursday’s starting at 5:30pm and run for 6 weeks. Open Play every day from 11-5 and Mommy and Me classes are from 10-10:45 every morning. Bring your child and play or socialize with your friends while we educate and teach your child to be creative and use their imaginations. For $7.00 you can’t beat it!

The building is right off of the Columbia Road exit from I-90.

If downtown is more convenient for you, there are also several day-long LEGO workshops taking place at the Great Lakes Science Center over winter break for grades K-8.

Until next time,

Lorelei

Holiday CircleFest This Sunday

Holiday CircleFest 2011 at University Circle

December 04 – 1:00pm to 5:30pm

Start off the holiday season with a trip to the 18th Annual Holiday CircleFest. It’s the perfect way to experience University Circle, free of charge. Many of University Circle’s renowned museums, gardens, galleries, churches, and schools open their doors and offer an afternoon of activities, food, and shopping.

Perhaps the most highly anticipated activity of Holiday CircleFest is the opening of The Rink at Wade Oval. Admission to The Rink is free, and skate rentals are only $3. After visitors have finished skating, they can warm up with a cup of coffee or hot chocolate… continue reading

More Locally Made Gifts For Christmas

A great couple who I used to go to church with has this neat little business going on making soaps, salt and sugar scrubs, silk scarves and jewelry.     They also have a blog, Images in Bloom, which is great because it means I get to learn about more places to buy locally made gifts this holiday season.  Here’s 3 more that I discovered thanks to the post, “Restocking, Reenergizing and ready for Winterfest.”

• Collective Upcycle Pop Up is located on Shaker Square between Fire REstaurant and Yours Truely REstaurant in the space that once was the wine shop. Over 30 artists with amazing products, most of which were recycled in some way.
• Cosmic Bobbins Pop Up is in the heart of downtown Tremont, and in fact is the storefront of the building owned by Tremont West Development Corp. A lovely small retail space, but well organized, and more high end on products…
• Winterfest – Check out the vendor tents on Public Square before the big celebration this Saturday!

Or check out their wares on Etsy at http://www.etsy.com/shop/imagesinbloom.

Until next time,

Lorelei

Local Gifts and Crafts Made in the USA

Going with my theme for the week I felt that I needed to add “Made in the USA” in the title, but these are actually places where you can buy some local goods, artwork or crafts that would make great Christmas presents.

Holden Arboretum’s Gifts from the Heart of Nature
Craft sale continues through Fri 12/30 from 9AM-5PM. Gifts from the Heart of Nature promotes regional artists with nature inspired works, and crafts made from environmentally responsible materials. Visit HoldenArb.org for event details.

Brecksville Center for the Arts Shoppe for Art
http://www.brecksvillearts.org/shoppeforart….html
Visit our Shoppe for Art, a small gallery in our Highland Drive facility featuring the works of area artists and BCA instructors. Works of art will be on display for one month or more and are available for sale. The Shoppe will also feature fine crafted gift items during special seasonal and holiday gift shows. The Shoppe for Art will be open during regular office hours 9:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Call 440-526-6232 for more information.

2011 Made in the 216 Holiday Shoppe at Room Service
http://madeinthe216.com/about.php
MADE IN THE 216 is a shopping event designed to tout the design community of Cleveland and to support those that have chosen to stay and base their creative endeavors right here in ‘the 216’. By showcasing the designers along with musicians and caterers in a setting merchandised and designed to look like a fun and engaging retail space, the guests are encouraged to explore and discover the products and shop and have fun!

Lake Erie Artists Gallery
http://lakeerieartists.com
Lake Erie Artists Gallery offers you the opportunity to browse and collect the finest local Cleveland art, photography, and memorabilia as well as wonderful jewelry from local Cleveland, Ohio artists. Please browse and bookmark our unique art gifts for yourself and your friends. We will ship your gifts just about anywhere in the world safely.

Cleveland Handmade at Winterfest! Sat Nov 26th or Buy Online
http://www.clevelandhandmade.com/
A new part of the festivities will be the Winterfest Village which will include artists and craftspeople (many from Cleveland Handmade Markets) selling their wares in a large, heated tent on Public Square from 3-7pm. Make visiting (and shopping with small business people) a new part of your Holiday tradition!

Can you think of more?

Until next time,

Lorelei

Step 2 Made in the USA

First of all, I am a big Step 2 fan, because it’s a local company like Little Tikes and Build a Dream Playhouses.    But I am now an even bigger fan, because they make it so clear on their website as to what is strictly “Made in the USA,” versus, kinda made in the USA (but by government standards could be labeled as “Made in the USA”, versus not made here at all.

http://www.step2.com/made-in-usa/

I’ve written a bit about Step 2 in the past:

• Step2 Store in Streetsboro
• Cleveland Holiday Shopping Tips and Toys R Us 15% Off Coupon

Visit the store itself at:

Step2 Store
10010 Aurora-Hudson Rd.
Streetsboro, OH

And, according to their Facebook page:

Don’t miss your chance to get additional savings for Black Friday Weekend!
If you come into the store now through November 23rd, you can receive a coupon for 25% off one product (excluding clearance)!

Until tomorrow,

Lorelei