COVER STORY: Cool Play Ideas for Kids
By Joe Scott, News & Record (GoTriad)
June 30, 2009
As family budgets tighten, here is one thing to keep in mind: When it comes to entertaining kids, spending time with them is more valuable than spending money.
So we asked some creative parents in the Triad, from musicians to artists to club owners, to offer ideas that are off the beaten — and expensive — paths of video games or trips to amusement parks. Some suggestions involve simple pleasures such as crafts and home gardening or family-friendly businesses in the Triad. Others involve day trips to Climax and Troy.
If you take a chance and spend the time, you and your kids are likely to create the vivid, colorful memories that will outlast anything you could ever buy at a store.
Other Ideas
Don’t miss some of these other fun activities for kids.
GTCC Cline Observatory: Free and open to the public every clear Friday night for viewing on the Jamestown campus. www.gtcc.edu/services/observatory
Geocaching: A treasure hunt using GPS devices. Locate hidden containers (or geocaches) outdoors and then share your experiences online. Search for geocaches at www.geocaching.com.
Kids in the Kitchen Series: Make simple hands-on recipes every third Tuesday of the month. Free. Next class is 4:30 p.m. Aug. 18 at Earth Fare, 2965 Battleground Ave., Greensboro. Recommended for ages 4 (with parent present) to 12. Space is limited. Register by calling 369-0190.
Gold and Gem Panning: Pan for gold, emeralds, rubies, garnets, amethyst, crystals, and more at Castle McCulloch (3925 Kivett Drive, Jamestown) 2-4 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, June through August; 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday, April 1 through October 31. Admission is $4, buckets starting at $10; 887-2206 or www.castlemcculloch.com.
Around the house …
Barbie’s ‘Project Runway’
Suggested by: Mary Young, acting executive director for the Green Hill Center for N.C. Art and Artquest. Mother of Emilie, 17, and Annie, 10 (www.greenhillcenter.org).
Want to dress up your old Barbie dolls without dumping loads of money on expensive doll clothes and accessories?
Then borrow this idea that Mary Young and her daughter Annie got while watching the hit fashion reality series “Project Runway” on the Bravo network.
All it takes are scraps of fabric and some masking tape. Then, as series host Tim Gunn would say, “Make it work.”
The best time to play this game, according to Young, is when her daughter’s friends come over for a visit.
“Then they have fashion shows and come up with the most innovative and fun outfits that I’m sure Barbie would just love to have because some of them are really cool,” Young says. “The part I hate the most is judging, but I have to do it because somebody has to win, so it’s fun.”
More online: www.crazyforbarbie.com/freebarbieclothespattern.php
Recycled stuffed animals
Suggested by: Mary Young
For the high schooler who has a friend’s birthday coming up and limited pocket money to purchase a gift from the mall, Mary Young suggests they buy an old colorful sweater from a used clothing store.
“My oldest does this thing on her own where she takes old and used sweaters and uses the thread to make recycled stuffed animals,” Young says. “She wanted to make gifts for her friends because they are all going off to school, so she sews, but instead of using patterns and things, she gets creative with old sweaters.”
Rookies might want to start with something simple like a baby chicken or a lamb, but the more ambitious can work up to a larger animal or get a little zany and customize their own Ugly Doll replicas.
“Handcrafts are really disappearing in our culture; so it’s good for parents to work with their kids on keeping those arts alive,” Young says.
More online: www.marthastewart.com/article/stuffed-animals-how-to or http://cartoon-fabrics.com/MakeanUglyDoll
Vegetable Gardening
Suggested by: Lorenzo “Logie” Meachum, storyteller, musician and father of Ishmael, 10, and Isa, 8 (www.logieworks.com).
Since the dawning of canned food and frozen peas, gardening might no longer be essential to mankind’s survival. However, that doesn’t mean it’s not a lot of fun or a good way to show kids where their food comes from.
“One thing we like to do is work in the vegetable garden, says Lorenzo “Logie’ Meachum. “Today we’re going to go and pick potatoes.
“We got about three good rows that will give me a bushel, if not two bushels of potatoes.”
Meachum and his sons started their backyard garden in March, where the three of them also planted cucumber, onion and squash. Now come dinnertime, they get to enjoy the fruits – or vegetables – of their labors.
“Yesterday we had cucumber, and onion, potatoes and squash,” Meachum says. “Then we cooked a little pork tenderloin and we had a whole meal that we pretty much got out of the garden.”
More online: www.garden.org; www.gardenweb.com
Cardboard Weapons
Suggested by: Anne Schroth, owner of Red Canary Fabric Print Studio and mother of Otto, 7 and Angus, 4 (www.redcanary.com).
Anyone who recycles knows there’s nothing worse than a bin jammed with huge, cumbersome slabs of cardboard. So to break down those boxes without doing all of the tearing and cutting herself, one strategy Anne Schroth uses is allowing her sons to convert their recycling into cool medieval weapons.
“Otto will take the recycling and make swords and shields out of boxes,” Schroth says. “They’re pretty independently creative on their own.”
She adds that her sons like to take scraps of fabric from her studio to make superhero costumes.
But why stop at swords and shields? Kids can also use cereal boxes, toilet paper rolls and other cardboard objects to fashion miniature castles, catapults and Spartan helmets. With a little bit of glue or papier-mâché, your kids could be fighting back Persian armies in no time.
More online: www.stormthecastle.com
Backyard Camping
Suggested by: Abigail Seymour, photographer and mother of Joaquin, 3½ and Lila Mae, 2 (www.abigailseymour.com) .
As an ardent fan of the outdoors, Abigail Seymour and her husband love to go camping, but their children are too young to go along with them.
Her solution: She and her husband converted their backyard into a campsite.
“Anything we do is outside, and we were like that before we had children,” Seymour says. “And so the first thing that we did this winter to prepare for the summer is turn our backyard into a campsite.”
She and her husband built a firepit this winter so they can spend time with their kids around the campfire, which they use during evenings when the temperature is a bit cooler.
“We basically created a backyard room,” Seymour says. “We also have a vegetable garden, a pergola covered with vines and under that we have a sand box.”
Out and About
Dye Nation (5211 West Market St., Greensboro)
Suggested by: Allison King, singer and guitarist for the Allison King Band and mother of Zoë, 6, and Zadyn, 4 (www.myspace.com/allisonkingband).
Founded by Stan and Jullian Reich, Dye Nation lets kids celebrate the Age of Aquarius minus the patchouli oil and crazy hippie dancing.
“We love this place,” Allison King says. “The girls make tie-dye T-shirts and clothes there and we have lots of fun.”
Dye Nation tie-dyes everything from shirts, skirts, bookbags and hair scrunchies. Clothing sizes range from infant to 6XL.
And for children’s birthdays, they host tie-dye parties — called “Parties2Dye4” — where they even serve tie-dye cupcakes.
More online: www.dyenation.com, www.parties2dye4.com, or 299-5261.
Kathleen Clay Edwards Family Branch Library (1420 Price Park Drive, Greensboro)
Suggested by: Lee Mortensen, vice president of Downtown Greensboro Inc. and mother of Skye, 8½ (www.downtowngreensboro.net).
One of Greensboro’s best-kept secrets is this public library that specializes in more than just books.
“They have great walking trails there, and most people don’t know that,” Lee Mortensen says.
It helps that the library is close to Price Park, and they take full advantage of that by directing people via dirt trails. Families may also rent bird-watching kits from the library as well.
“Something’s always different or growing different every time you go,” Mortensen says. “And what’s nice is that it’s shaded, and sometimes we’ll take our dog, Abby, and it’s a great trail because it’s very rustic.”
More online: www.greensboro-nc.gov/Departments/Library/branches/KCEFB or 373-2923.
Goat Lady Dairy (3515 Jess Hacket Road, Climax)
Suggested by: Lee Mortensen
Patrons of the Greensboro Farmers’ Curb Market have no doubt sampled the cheeses, truffles and other wares made by the Goat Lady Dairy.
That said, if families make the trip to Climax to visit the Goat Lady Dairy Farm during its scheduled Sunday open house events, not only will they get the chance to see how all of these delectables are made — and the goats — they can also pet the animals, gather eggs and tour the gardens. Other activities include casual strolls through the woods beside the farm or picnics next to the pond.
“We’ve taken our daughter there faithfully ever since she was in a Snugli baby carrier,” Mortensen says. “That’s our day-trip kind of thing.”
More online: www.goatladydairy.com or 824-2163.
Fincastles Restaurant,
(215 S. Elm St., Greensboro)
Submitted by: Erik Beerbower, sculptor and father of Emmett, 6, and Esmae, 4 (www.lyndonstreetartworks.com).
If Dye Nation gives kids a taste of the ’60s, then Fincastles dials it back another decade to the burger joints of the ’50s.
The ground beef sizzles to the soundtrack of jazz music and oldies from the jukebox. Locals dig the fried pickles, too, but Erik Beerbower and his kids like to indulge their sweet tooth.
“We like to go get milkshakes,” Beerbower says. “I love Fincastles. It’s a great, kid-friendly place.”
More online: www.fincastles.com or 272-8968.
Downtown Winston-Salem Summer Music Series (Corpening Plaza, First and Liberty Streets; Arts District, Sixth and Trade streets)
Suggested by: Richard Emmett, owner of The Garage and father of Aubrey, 8, and Levi, 7 (www.the-garage.ws).
With three different music series happening every week of the year, the Downtown Winston-Salem Summer Music Series gives music fans the perfect opportunity to enjoy free live music outdoors.
“We go to a lot of the summer music events in downtown Winston-Salem that are free,” Emmett says. “My kids particularly like the kettle corn and lemonade.”
Parents can boogie down with their kids at the Alive After Five series which takes place 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. every Thursday at the Corpening Plaza. The lineup spans the musical spectrum from psychedelic rock (the Mantras), ’80s music (the Plaids), funk (Simplified) and Americana (Thacker Dairy Road).
The Downtown Jazz series is 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Fridays at Corpening Plaza. Summer on Trade is 7 to 10 p.m. Saturdays.
More online: www.dwsp.org/music or 354-1500.
Uwharrie National Forest Campgrounds (789 N.C. 24/27 East, Troy)
Suggested by: Lorenzo “Logie” Meachum
This campground in Troy might be difficult to spell, but Logie Meachum likes it so much, he was almost hesitant to recommend it.
“My wife said don’t give away this secret because everybody will be there,” Meachum says, laughing.
The site offers guests ample swimming holes, bathroom facilities for campers and trails for hiking.
But as beautiful as Uwharrie can be, Meachum warns potential visitors to watch where they step.
“Uwharrie is far enough in the South that instead of the usual one poisonous breed of snakes that we have here, copperheads, they got rattlesnakes,” Meachum says. “So you can’t just go running la-dee-dah down in the woods.”
More online: www.forestcamping.com/dow/southern/uwh.htm or (704) 257-4200.
