KCKidsFun

Labor Day Weekend in Kansas City is already upon us! How did this happen?! Where has summer gone?!

I’ve got a second-grader and a first-grader (as well as two-year-old twins) and we’re already knee-deep in homework and reading logs and school projects. And I’m looking forward to relaxing this weekend with the kids. It will be the last non-soccer weekend for two months – so I’m going to enjoy the lack of schedule. But I also want to end the summer of 2009 on a fun note for the little ones.

We’re considering the Irish Fest at Crown Center and Pops in the Park. I know some folks who are headed to Independence for Santa-Cali-Gon Days. How about you? Does anything on our list of Kansas City’s family-friendly Labor Day events sound good?

Friday, September 4, 2009

• Royals vs. Angels- Kauffman Stadium – Buck Night (popcorn, small pretzels, small Pepsis and peanuts just $1!) and FIREWORKS FRIDAY!
• Secret Garden, Barn Players Theatre, Mission KS – August 28-30 and September 4-6 and 11-13
• Kansas City Irish Fest – Crown Center (KCMO) – thru September 6 – food, crafts, activities, music and dancing – admission free for kids 12 and under
• Santa-Cali-Gon Days, Independence, MO – huge carnival, games, food, music and more! – thru September 7
• Friday Family Fun Night – Kansas City Public Library, Plaza branch – 7pm – FREE!

Saturday, September 5, 2009

• Saturday Morning Storytime for Preschoolers, Toy & Miniature Museum (KCMO) – 10:30am – free with museum admission
• Free Movie at Kearney Amphitheatre (Kearney, MO) – movie starts at dusk – High School Musical 3
• Secret Garden, Barn Players Theatre, Mission KS – August 28-30 and September 4-6 and 11-13
• Kansas City Irish Fest – Crown Center (KCMO) – thru September 6 – food, crafts, activities, music and dancing – admission free for kids 12 and under
• Tallgrass T-Shirts – Anita B. Gorman Conservation Discovery Center (KCMO) – 10am to 3pm - FREE!
• Kid Flicks at the Library, Johnson County Library, Oak Park branch – 2pm (bring a pillow and a friend!) – under 7 must be accompanied by parent – FREE!
• Pops in the Park – Kansas City Symphony at Shawnee Mission Park, Shawnee, KS – concert at 7pm; gates open at 5pm with “Instrument Petting Zoo” at 5:30pm
• Saturday Dive-In Movies at the Westin Crown Center (KCMO) – movie begins at sundown; food/drink available for poolside service – this week’s flick: Wall-E (open to registered hotel guests only)
• Santa-Cali-Gon Days, Independence, MO – huge carnival, games, food, music and more! – thru September 7
• Renaissance Festival, Bonner Springs, KS – weekends thru October 18

Sunday, September 6, 2009

• Secret Garden, Barn Players Theatre, Mission KS – August 28-30 and September 4-6 and 11-13
• Kansas City Irish Fest – Crown Center (KCMO) – thru September 6 – food, crafts, activities, music and dancing – admission free for kids 12 and under
• Santa-Cali-Gon Days, Independence, MO – huge carnival, games, food, music and more! – thru September 7
• Renaissance Festival, Bonner Springs, KS – weekends thru October 18
• Kansas City Museum – First Sunday Family Fun Day

Monday, September 7, 2009

• Royals vs. Angels, Kauffman Stadium – Royal Nite – $5 upper level seats!
• Live at the Legends (KCK) – live music for mom & dad; Wonderscope Kids’ Zone for the little ones! – noon to 3pm
• Santa-Cali-Gon Days, Independence, MO – huge carnival, games, food, music and more! – thru September 7
• Renaissance Festival, Bonner Springs, KS – weekends thru October 18

Having fun this weekend around Kansas City won’t be hard for even the most budget-conscious families! There are a number of different events going on this Saturday which are FREE (or at least pretty inexpensive).

Here are a few that you might want to check out:

♦ Head downtown to the Power & Light District (YES, the P&L WITH your kids!) for the Sprint Family Fun Days from 12pm to 4pm. There will be games, crafts, activities and Radio Disney! This fun event is scheduled once a month into the fall. And this month’s theme is “All that you ART.” Enjoy painting, jewelry-making, balloon artists and many more fun art activities. Quixotic Dancers & Drummers will be performing on the KC Live Stage!

♦ Merriam is holding its Turkey Creek Festival on Saturday as well. Head to Antioch Park for arts, crafts, a little red train ride, pony rides, exotic petting zoo, moon walk, 23′ double inflatable slide, an obstacle course, a roving magician and a balloon artist and caricaturist. There will be pedal boat rides and kid-friendly concerts. And a parade at 11am! Mr. Stinky Feet will perform at noon!

♦ Later in the afternoon and evening, you can head to Leawood’s Town Center Plaza for Amuse: A Fashionable Circus benefiting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. It is FREE for all ages from 3pm to 8pm and features a 50 Foot Ferris Wheel, Extreme Face Painting, Stilt Walkers, Balloon Art, Kids’ Music Korner, Cotton Candy and Popcorn vendors, and much much more!

♦ If you miss Mr. Stinky Feet at noon in Merriam, you can head north of the river and catch him performing at the Kid Fest in Kearney, MO. The event runs from 12pm to 4pm at Jesse James Park~Kearney Amphitheater. The Mr. Stinky Feet concert is at 3pm. There will be prizes, explore police cars, fire truck, ambulance and UPS truck, bicycle safety course and more! Free food for the kids that register. Food for adults and anyone not registered is $1.00. All proceeds donated to the Toys for Tots Literacy Fund.

So, if you’re not booked up with soccer games and baseball games this Saturday, leave some of your worries behind and take off with the kids for a little FREE fun! You deserve it! And you can afford this kind of fun!

There is something special about the relationship between a good daddy and his baby girl. Dad (or stepdad or uncle or grandpa) has the chance to take his best little girl or girls out on the town this month – on several occasions!

This Friday, February 6th, the Olathe Parks & Rec is sponsoring the Daddy Daughter Ball from 7pm to 10pm. It will be held at the Ball Conference Center in Olathe and is open to kids ages 5 to 12. Preregistration is required. Your $50 (for residents/$55 for non-residents) will get you dancing, refreshments, photos and more!

On Saturday, February 7th, the Merriam Parks & Rec will host a Daddy Daughter Valentine’s Dance from 7pm to 9pm at the Irene French Community Center. It is open to girls ages 3 to 12 and costs $40.

Lee’s Summit Parks and Recreation is hosting THREE Father-Daughter Dinner/Dances – February 6th and two separate events on February 7th. Check the website for details!

Later in the month, on Friday, February 20th, the Blue Valley Recreation Commission presents Daddy Daughter Date Night at the Ritz Charles (Overland Park) from 7-10pm. Girls in kindergarten thru 5th grade are welcome. The cost is $40 for residents and $50 for non-residents. Pre-registration is required by February 13th.

KC Parent magazine and Providence Community Church are sponsoring a Daddy & Daughter Dance on Saturday, February 21st at Providence Community Church Activity Center in Lenexa. The event runs from 6 to 9pm and will feature dinner, flowers, music dancing and Cinderella! $60 per couple; tickets must be purchased in advance.

Also on February 21st is Gladstone’s First Annual Daddy Daughter Sweetheart Dance. Held at the Gladstone Community Center from 6:30pm to 9:30pm, the event is open to girls from 3 to 15. Tickets are $35 per couple and reservations are required by February 13.

With so many choices, you’ve got no excuse! Grab a suit out of the closet, polish your shoes and take your best girl out on the town!