Fun for families this weekend
The Leakin Park train rides are back this weekend (and every second Sunday of each month through November).
Thursday, Aug. 6:
Learn to Fish: Use bamboo, string and a bobber to make your own fishing pole at Patapsco Valley State Park. Children ages 6 and up can learn more about fish and water, as well as try to catch their own with homemade fishing poles. Bring your own sunblock and water, and meet up at the picnic tables at Lost Lake. This event costs $2 per person, and lasts from 10 a.m. to noon. Call ahead to sign up at 410-461-5005.
Seuss Stories: Enjoy a day with Dr. Seuss and his characters, including The Cat in the Hat, Horton and The Grinch at Carroll Arts Center. Children are invited to participate in sing-a-longs, dance-a-longs and laugh-a-longs at 10:30 a.m. or 1 p.m. This event costs $5 to $7 per person and registration is required. Call 410-848-7272.
The Chromatics: Celebrate a penumbral lunar eclipse with the astrophysicists at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and their band, The Chromatics, at Chesapeake Arts Center. Families can enjoy the six-member a capella do-wop band at 7:30 p.m., for $8 to $10 per person.
Friday, Aug. 7:
Outdoor Movies: Watch a free presentation of "Kung-Fu Panda" at the Hereford Volunteer Fire Co. Bring your own chair, and enjoy an evening of games and door prizes. The movie starts at 6 p.m.
Owl Prowl: Listen for the sounds of owls during a nighttime hike, and learn more about the animals after the hike in a Scales and Tales presentation. Bring your own water, and wear sturdy shoes, to this event at Soldier’s Delight Natural Environment Area. This event is $5 per person, and for ages 7 and up. Call in advance to sign up at 410-461-5005. The event lasts from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Friday Hike: Learn more about forest and stream ecology during this guided hike at Patapsco Valley State Park. Those 6 and up can participate for $2 per person. Wear sturdy shoes and bring your own water. The event lasts from 10 a.m. to noon, and participants need to call in advance to sign up at 410-461-5005.
Freaky Friday Science Labs with UMBI: See the various stages of a crab’s life at Port Discovery’s Freaky Friday- Crab Investigation. This event is from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., and requires admission to the museum at $12.95 per person.
More Saturday and Sunday...
Saturday, Aug. 8:
Ancestral Knowledge: Survive the wild with the skills our ancestors used at Benjamin Banneker Historical Park & Museum. Learn how to build fires, make ropes and track animals in this event, which lasts from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. Free.
Star-Gazing: Perseid Meteor Shower: Learn more about the sun and magnetic storms with the Westminster Astronomy club from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., and then come back later for star-gazing of the Perseid meteor shower from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. These events will take place at Patapsco Valley State Park, and are free. Call in advance to sign up: 410-549-3026.
FestAfrica 2009: Celebrate African culture and heritage at this two-day festival in Patterson Park. There will be a dance competition, traditional foods and crafts and musical performances by African artists such as Anna Mwalagho and DJ Arafat. This event lasts from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday, and is $5 per person, and free for children under 10.
Anime Drawing: For a fun afternoon for teenagers, head out to the North Point branch of the Baltimore County Public Library. Teenagers ages 11 to 17 can learn how to draw an anime character. This event is free and starts at 2 p.m.
The Bubble Lady: Explore the world of bubbles with Margie Lynch as she creates them in all shapes and sizes. All ages are invited to this event at the Woodlawn branch of the Baltimore County Public Library, and children under age 6 need to be accompanied by an adult. This event is free and starts at 2 p.m.
Free Welcome Home Concert: Enjoy a night of free music with the Concert Choir at the Maryland State Boychoir Center for the Arts. The choir is returning from a tour in New England and Nova Scotia, and the performance will take place at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, Aug. 9:
Second Sundays in Leakin Park: Ride around the miniature trains at Leakin Park, from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Adults can go hiking at 1 p.m., or tour the historic mansion and grounds from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Free.
Plants and People Series: Exploration Station: Learn more about xeriscaping and water conservation through hands-on activities at the Howard P. Rawlings Conservatory and Botanical Gardens. Children, ages 7 to 13, can learn about decorating with rocks, make their own ladybug rock, make a mini-xeriscape with native plants and more. This event lasts from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. and is free.
Healing Herbs: Cleopatra Milk Bath: Explore the medicinal properties of herbs, and take home a product made from featured plants, in this program at the Anita C. Leight Estuary Center from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. This event is for ages 14 and up, and is $4 per person. Registration is required; call 410-612-1688.
Free Family Sundays: Postcards from Paris: Families are invited to spend a free afternoon at the Baltimore Museum of Art for an art activity called Postcards from Paris. 2 p.m. Registration is required; call 443-573-1700.
Painting Inside and Out: Free Drop-In Art Activities: Let your artistic side out at the Walters Art Museum, as part of its weekly Drop-In Art Activities for August, inspired by an exhibit by Herman Maril: An American Modernist. Explore a world of bright colors, shapes and sizes, and learn techniques for paper tearing, oil pastels and other art tools. This event is free and lasts from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
--List compiled by Kayla Cross
(Photo of the Leakin Park trains in April by Baltimore Sun photographer Barbara Haddock Taylor)
Comments
There's a little train in Leakin Park? Whoo-Hoo! and Whoo-Whooooooo!
THAT'S going on the itinerary. Even if I have to cut out a restaurant to make it fit.
Posted by: Bucky | August 6, 2009 9:19 AM
The trains at Leakin Park are fantastic. My 6 year was a bit skeptical but once we boarded, he thought it was the best. He would have rode those trains all day had the line not been so long.
Posted by: kqmom | August 6, 2009 8:41 PM
Hi Kate,
I just wanted to share with you a blog that I have started for families on the east coast. I am both looking for readers and writers for the blog. I felt like living centrally on the east coast was such a blessing and having the ability to take trips either up and down the coast is so much easier because we are in the middle. My blog is www.familyfuninmdandbeyond.blogspot.com
Feel free to check it out, share it with your readers, comment on places, or send me people that you know of that have gone to places and are looking to write.
Brett
Posted by: Brett | October 7, 2009 8:52 PM