Alameda County residents can get free admission to SF’s Aquarium of the Bay (at Pier 39) from Monday, Feb. 22-Thursday, Feb. 25. (Napa, Sonoma, and Solano County residents can enjoy free admission from Tuesday, Feb. 16 – Thursday, Feb. 18.) You must bring a valid drivers license or ID card with your address or a utility or bank statement, along with photo ID.
This might be a nice place to check out if it’s rainy next weekend… if you are willing to brave SF parking and traffic.
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Inspired by Aletheia’s great success at Sadiedey’s Cafe, it didn’t take much convincing on her part to get me to meet her over there yesterday. We had a great time and will definitely return at some point. Here’s some pertinent information if you decide to go over there:
1. It’s like an Asian household – shoes off when you enter the play area. There are cubby holes, just like in kindergarten, for your shoes and belongings.
2. There’s a $10 minimum charge for use of Visa/MC. If your purchase is under $10 and you want to use your credit card, they’ll add a $.40 charge. They’ll also open up a tab under your name if you wish. And no, they don’t serve alcohol.
3. No outside food or drinks aloud – and this includes food/drinks for babies and kids. They do sell Gerber baby food there, however. This is a bit of a bummer, particularly since we’re keeping our son on a really high-fat and high-protein diet. But oh well. You can check out their menu online.
4. I saw some adults working on their laptops there (the cafe, however, is probably not the most productive and serene work area…). They have wifi.
5. They have lots of seating near the play area so that you can monitor your child while holding an adult conversation with someone else.
6. You can hold your kid’s birthday party there. For more details including pricing information, see here.
7. ALERT – they have a ball pit. You may lose your child in a sea of brightly colored balls.
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These are the rainy days, my friends. To quote Dr. Seuss’ classic “The Cat in the Hat“:
The sun did not shine.
It was too wet to play.
So we sat in the house
All that cold, cold wet day.
I sat there with Sally.
We sat there, we two.
And I said, “How I wish
We had something to do!”
Well, after a few rainy afternoons of listening to my kids (ages 1 and 2) squabble endlessly, I certainly wished that they had something to do. Or possibly that there was something I could do with them, such as donate them to a good cause. But I digress! Even after the recent sunny spell, the various playgrounds are still too damp and muddy to use. So, instead of inflicting my kids (who have not yet developed indoor voices) on our local library again, I took them to Sadiedey’s Cafe in the Temescal area of Oakland. This turned out to be an awesome decision!
Sadiedey’s Cafe is a children’s play area and coffee shop, combined. You go in, pay $5.95 for the first child and $2.95 for siblings, and then order your coffee or snacks or what have you. And then…this is the awesome part…you can release your kids into the play area while you sit at a nearby table and drink your coffee!
The play area is small, but with varied activities that are perfectly designed for the five and under crowd. There is a separate, smaller play area for crawlers, and even another room with couches for nursing or quiet time. At least when we went, the atmosphere was very mellow – parents do not tend to hover, and, thanks to the (reasonably priced) food and coffee, everyone seems to be having a good day.
You can check out the Sadiedey’s Cafe calendar of events here. No parking lot, but street parking is readily available within a one block radius.
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Chinese New Year is right around the corner – so it’s time to stuff those red envelopes with cash dollars, clean the house, make dumplings, and get new clothes.
There are some local events to help kids learn about Chinese New Year and get in a festive spirit.
Chinese New Year Celebration
Celebrate the Year of the Tiger with crafts and games for children 12 and under. FREE.
Tuesday, Feb. 9 – 3:30-5:00PM
Albany Community Center
1249 Marin Ave., Albany
(510)524-9283
Year of the Tiger
Celebrate Chinese New Year with a performance by the White Crane Lion Dance Troupe. FREE.
Tuesday, Feb. 9 – 4:00-4:45PM
Danville Library
400 Front St., Danville
(925)837-4880
Make a Craft for Chinese New Year
Christie of Christie’s Creative Cupboard will help us Celebrate Chinese New Year by teaching us to design our own Dancing Dragon! This program is for children 4 and up. Younger children will need an adult helper. This is sure to be a popular program, so tickets will be handed out beginning 30 minutes prior to the program’s start.
Irvington Branch Library in Fremont
contact: Sally Kusalo, (510)795-2631
Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day Craft
make paper dragons and Valentine’s crafts
Thursday, Feb. 11 – 5:45-7:00PM
Newark Branch Library
6300 Civic Terrace Ave., Newark
(510)795-2627
Lunar New Year Flower Market
To celebrate the Year of the Tiger, the San Francisco Botanical Garden Society will host its 11th Annual Lunar New Year Flower Market in the County Fair Building’s spacious gallery at 9th Avenue and Lincoln Way. FREE.
Saturday, Feb 13 – 10:00AM – 2:00PM
See their website here for more information.
Chinese New Year Lantern Riddle Game
Solve a lantern riddle and win a lantern! Stop by any time today and Thursday to play this traditional Chinese New Year game. Riddles are in Chinese and English, choose up to three per day. For all ages.
Tuesday, Feb. 16 – all day; Thursday, Feb. 18 – all day
Centerville Branch Library, Fremont; contact Chien-Chun Chang at (510)795-2629
Chinese New Year Craft & Stories
Celebrate the New Year with stories and a craft!
Wednesday, Feb. 17 – 2:30PM
San Lorenzo Library; contact Anthony Dos Santos at (510)670-6283
Celebrate Chinese New Year – the Year of the Tiger
Celebrate the Year of the Tiger with members of the Citizens For a Better Community, South Bay Chinese Club and Purple Lotus Chinese School. Activities include crafts, martial arts demonstration, dance, music and much more.
Entertainment including a Lion Dance – 1-2 pm in the Fukaya Meeting Room
Crafts and Traditional Art demonstrations from 1- 4pm in the Children’s Area
Saturday, Feb. 20 – 1:00-4:00PM
Fremont Branch Library; contact Children’s Information Desk at (510)745-1421
Year of the Tiger – Chinese New Year Celebration
We are going to have the Chinese New Year Celebration at the Union City Library today. It is from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. with a Lion Dance and other performances scheduled at 2 p.m. There are also many various booths set up for you to browse, learn, and taste the rich Chinese culture.
Please come to join us and celebrate!!
Saturday, Feb. 27 – 1:00-4:00PM
Union City Library, (510)745-1464 x 7
Of course, there’s the famous:
Chinese New Year Festival and Parade in SF Chinatown
Saturday, Feb. 27 – 5:15PM
For the parade route and other information, see their website. In addition, there will be other festive celebrations during the weekends around Chinese New Year. For example, on February 6th and 7th, there will be a Chinese New Year Flower Market Fair and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony.
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Turn off the Wiggles, and expose your tots to a little culture! The San Francisco Chamber Orchestra has a series of free family concerts in February and April, with performances in San Francisco, Berkeley, Oakland, and San Mateo. Here are the details on the February concert series:
Family Concert II: Music and Song with the Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir
Our second concert collaboration with one of the Bay Area’s finest young vocal ensembles. Our theme will be songs about water, and program will also include side-by-side musicians from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music Prep Chamber Orchestra, Berkeley’s Crowden School, and Hillsdale High School in San Mateo.
2pm Saturday, Feb 27, 2010 SF Conservatory of Music Concert Hall, 50 Oak Street, San Francisco
12pm Sunday, Feb 28, 2010 Julia Morgan Theater, 2640 College Avenue, Berkeley
3pm Sunday, Feb 28, 2010 Hillsdale High School, 3115 Del Monte Street, San Mateo
Get more details from Bay Area on the Cheap.
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