KCKidsFun

No doubt you’ve seen the proliferation of pumpkins and mums at every store in town–fall is officially here!  If you missed our earlier post on the city’s Pumpkin Patches and Apple Orchards, check it out–there are so many to choose from, and they are located in every corner of the metro.

Speaking of pumpkin patches, you won’t want to miss the annual Crown Center Pumpkin Patch, which will be Saturday, October 10, 2009, at Crown Center Square, from 10am until 5pm.  Featuring over 30000 pounds of pumpkins, the event benefits Children’s Therapeutic Learning Center (CTLC), one of our valued community partners.  Proceeds help support the mission of CTLC, which is to provide therapeutic and educational services for children with disabilities in an environment which fosters their independence and celebrates their successes.  This is lots and lots of fun!

Another fun place you won’t want to miss is Lee’s Summit’s Paradise Park.  I wrote about Paradise Park this summer, after a great outing with my son.  We rode the go-karts and went miniature golfing in July.  Now that fall is here, Paradise Park has a Tractor-Pulled Hayride and Pumpkin Patch, a Haunted Castle Maze and the popular Foam Factory has transformed into “Ollie’s Haunted Foam Factory”!  For those of you celebrating fall birthdays…you can even host a birthday party–complete with s’mores, pizza, birthday cake and video games.  What fun!

If you missed our listing of Fall Consignment Sales, don’t worry.  There are still many held during the month of October.  Here We Grown Again has one coming up this weekend in Shawnee, KS, in fact!  You can find great deals on back-to-school clothes (in case your kids have shot up a few inches already!!) as well as toys and other necessities.  Consignment sales aren’t just for shoppers…you can make a few bucks, too!  Contact the particular sale you’re interested in and typically for a small entry fee, you can tag your items for resale and bag up to 70% of the sale price.  Not bad!

June 28, 2009 is the date when the community pulls together in support of one of our city’s finest preschools–Children’s Therapeutic Learning Center (CTLC).  Located at 31st and Main in Kansas City, CTLC is a fully accredited preschool and has been providing outstanding early education to children with special needs, as well as for those who are typically developing.

Did you know that CTLC was founded in 1947?!?  The preschool serves children from the entire metro, across a broad range of physical and developmental disabilities.  Kate and I are honored to call CTLC one of our community partners.  We are so impressed with what this preschool has to offer–and we feel like it’s a feather in our city’s cap.   SO WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH DUCKS?????

RED Development, along with CTLC, joins forces again this year to bring 20,000 rubber ducks to the Country Club Plaza’s Brush Creek.  Families can enjoy live entertainment and family fun on the Plaza as they eagerly await the “DUCK DROP” into Brush Creek.  It is a sight to behold!

Here’s where you come in.  You can adopt a duck(s) for only $5, and there are some fabulous prizes to be had.  Grand Prize is a 2009 Harley Davidson VRSCF V-Rod Muscle bike donated by Central Harley Davidson South.  Other prizes include concert tickets, dining packages, Tiffany jewelry and retail gift cards just to name a few!!  Best of all, you will be directly helping fellow KANSAS CITIANS.  Not bad for $5!

The fun starts on Sunday, June 28 at 11am on the Plaza.  2pm will be the Duck Derby and the entertainment and fun ends at 4pm.  Head down to Brush Creek for a great day of fun!  If June 28 won’t work for you…don’t despair; you can still help those wonderful children at CTLC.  Check out the school’s Amazon Wish List for some much-needed items.   With a few simple clicks, you will be well on your way to making someone’s day!  It’s that easy to donate–all from the comfort of your home!  THANKS, READERS!

I had to do it…I’m not welcoming a new business to our advertising community (although we are SO thankful to each and every one of you and would gladly welcome more!) but I would like to introduce you to my daughter!  My husband and I just brought her home from India last week.  She is adjusting remarkably well to her new family, country, food, bed, etc… and we couldn’t be happier.  Our happiness is laced with a bit of to-be-expected jealousy on the part of her big brother; wondering why “everyone likes to take her picture and not his” and even asking me why we had to pick out the “crazy” one from the orphanage!

I have to admit, just before leaving town, I made good use of our Preschool Directory and have already enrolled her for once-weekly Mother’s Day Out for Fall 2009.  It seemed a bit strange filling out enrollment forms for a child I had never met!  I also wanted to give kudos to Kansas City’s own Children’s Mercy Hospital.  As part of their Infectious Disease Clinic, they run a fairly new International Adoption Clinic.  What a great resource for me and others in our three-state region!  The Clinic was our first stop in town and our daughter was thoroughly examined by a physician trained to look for and treat things not typically seen by our local pediatricians.  After giving what seemed like a gallon of blood to the lab, we will soon have a clearer understanding of which antibodies she has (her vaccination history) and if she’s been exposed to anything else we need to know about.  We will most likely visit 2-3 times before transitioning to our regular pediatrician.

Readers–thanks for letting me brag!  After a nearly 2 1/2 year wait and a trip round-the-world…I can honestly say it was more than worth it.  Thanks to Kate for picking up the slack during my absence.  I know I mentally checked out a few weeks ago and she didn’t say a word.  :-)