Your guide to activities and fun things to do with your preschoolers, toddlers and kids in san francisco, CA

Physical Activity in SF and a Concert in Berkeley

by Michael Rohde

May 27, 2009

There's music in Berkeley and physical fitness in San Francisco. If you're looking for something to do Saturday or Sunday, this might be it.

My Gym
My Gym welcomes you to celebrate national fitness month with free admission on Saturday, May 30th from 10am to 1pm. From their web site, "My Gym has developed an extraordinary program and facility devised to help children 6-weeks through 13-years of age develop physically, cognitively and emotionally." They are located at 901 Minnesota Street in San Francisco. You can call (415) 643-5500 for more information (My Gym web site).

The Sippy Cups
I've raved about them before and now is your chance to see The Sippy Cups live in Berkeley. Tickets are on sale now for the Sunday, May 31st show, which starts at 3pm and ends at 4:30pm. The concert takes place at the Ashkenaz Music & Dance Center at 1317 San Pablo Ave and Gilman in Berkeley. Tickets purchased in advance are $6 adults/$4 kids/babes in arms are free (The Sippy Cups web site)!

Pixar's Cars

by Michael Rohde

May 18, 2009

Like so many parents, we started out with a vow to keep our kids away from the television. And we did a very good job for two years. But then football season started, and the rain poured, and suddenly we discovered our kids really like watching “ball;” and apparently car and truck commercials are very entertaining. The occasional football game turned to PBS and next thing you know we are semi-regular viewers of Curious George, Clifford, Barney, Sesame Street, Word World, and Sid the Science Kid (who is my personal favorite right after Curious George). I do, however, try to avoid Caillou at all costs. I’m sorry to say it, but Caillou is one very whiny kid and I am not raising my kids in that fashion (we use our words and we do not cry and whine to get what we want).

Watching TV eventually lead us to DVDs. We started out with a collection of Barney DVDs, and a Learning Tree frog video, which teaches phonics. My kids liked that well enough until we popped in Pixar’s Cars, which brought everything else to a screeching halt. Now it’s all Cars all the time. And you know what? It’s a good movie. It’s a really good movie. I really don’t mind watching it for an hour in the morning while we get ready for the day.

You might think I’m stretching it a bit by saying this, but Cars is educational. My kids are learning more words watching Cars than they ever did from Barney. The one caveat there is that my daughter learned the word “wet” from watching Barney jump in the pool, but that’s a whole other story…

Here’s a list of names and words my kids have learned from watching Cars:

• Queen (as in Lighting McQueen)
• Jump (from the opening race sequence after Chick Hicks caused a wreck and ‘Queen has to jump over the wreckage)
• Cup (as in the Piston Cup)
• Frank (the not-so-scary tractor)
• Sally (Miss Sally)
• Race (car racing is very exciting)
• Fast (you know, cause thunder always follows lighting)
• Mac (one of the best scenes is watching Mac drive down the highway making funny faces in the reflection from other trucks)
• Cali (we’re still working on "Cali-for-nia" but Cali works for me)  

My ultimate goal is to teach them to say, "Ka-Chinga, Ka-Chinga," just for the cool factor alone.

Cars is kid-friendly, exciting, fast-paced, funny, very limited on the scary parts (which aren’t very scary after everyone learns Frank’s bark is worse than his bite), and educational.

Here’s a shout-out to all the great folks in Emeryville, CA working at Pixar. The Rohde’s are looking forward to the sequel!

If you missed it earlier, there's still time to enter the contest to win tickets to see Sesame Street Live in June at the Oakland ORACLE Arena (details). 

Yerba Buena Gardens Supports the Tap Project and UNICEF

by Michael Rohde

March 23, 2009

If you missed it this weekend, or if you haven’t been to Yerba Buena Gardens (YBG) in awhile, there is still time today and tomorrow to check out some new sculptures. YBG is providing UNICEF (in relation to the Tap project) sculpture space, pro bono, to help support the need for clean water. The sculptures will be showcased around the fountains until March 24th. This is an excellent opportunity to re-visit a popular San Francisco location, or if you’re brand new to the city, this is a spot you need to check out.

Yerba Buena Gardens (the garage is located at 5th and Mission) is a great place to take the kids to let them run and play. Surrounded by the Metreon and the Moscone, YBG has something for everyone:

• Zeum
  Zeum is a community-based art and technology museum serving youth and families in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. With a mission to foster creativity in young people, Zeum provides high quality, interactive experiences using art, media and technology tools to ignite the imagination and inspire lifelong learning.
• Yerba Buena Ice Skating Center
  The skating center offers year-round ice skating seven days a week, which includes public sessions, a skating school, and youth/adult hockey. The Hockey/Skate retail store features a full service Pro Shop and authentic skatewear. You can also host your Birthday Parties and Corporate events there. The center has accommodations for groups between 10-500 people.
• Yerba Buena Bowling Center
  The bowling center has 12 lanes, which are open 7 days a week. You can host Birthday Parties and Corporate Events for 10-100 people here and Bowling Leagues are also available.
• Historic Charles Looff Carousel
  The beautifully hand-carved Charles Loof Carousel was built in 1906 and was formerly the Carousel from Playland-at-the-Beach where it ran from 1912 to 1972. In 1998, it was purchased by the City of San Francisco, fully restored and brought to Yerba Buena Gardens. The carousel is open Daily from 10am-6pm. Admission is $2 per ride and is located at the corner of 4th and Howard next to the Zeum.

What's on Tap?

by Michael Rohde

March 18, 2009

From March 22nd through the 28th, many San Francisco restaurants are participating in the Tap project. Select restaurants will ask patrons to donate $1 or more for the tap water they usually enjoy for free. All funds raised will support UNICEF's efforts to bring clean and accessible water to millions of children around the world. Participating restaurants include, Pasta Pomodoro, Bon Appetit, Sapoten, Perry’s, Osha Thai, and many, many more. You can find a complete listing on the Tap Project web site.

Over at the Presidio Sports Basement store, Family Teams are gathering on Saturday for a kick off event to gear up for the March for Babies. It's not too late to sign up, participate, or make donations for the March of Dimes. My family has teamed up with the Ambassador of the event and we are looking forward to the walk!

According to Yahoo! weather, it is forecasted to rain this weekend, which means indoor activities. I realize that coloring, arts and crafts, and reading books are always great go-to's for indoor fun, but if your family has succumbed to video games and watching TV, then you might want to know about the Hasbro Family Game Night. Classic games such as Battleship, Yahtzee, Boggle, Connect Four, Scrabble, and Sorry! are now available for purchase on Xbox Live. You must have an Xbox Live Gold or Silver membership to download the games.

Winter Toy Reviews

by Graham Charles

December 02, 2008

The Savvy Moms-in-Chief have asked us to take a look at some of our favorite toys over on the national site; here are my first five favorite toys and what I had to say about them. Want more? Click on the "Books, Toys, and More" link above. Radio Flyer Sports Coupe My daughter has been a Radio Flyer nut since she first saw a wagon outside of a hardware store. Something about the  Read more...

99 Things to Do In San Francisco Before Kindergarten, Part 8: Sticking Around the House Like a San Franciscan

by Graham Charles

December 01, 2008

I'm closing in on the this list of a hundred things every San Francisco kid must do. This week, I thought I'd stay at home and write up some S.F.-inflected indoor activities.   71. Have a face-painting and dressup party. (Nothing says San Francisco like a feather boa.) 72. Make homemade presents for your friends and relations -- very post-consumerist! 73. Plant a California native plant  Read more...

November Recap

by Graham Charles

November 28, 2008

Thanks for a great month! We turned your preschooler into a foodie , had a bit of an alphabetical laugh , and baked a very messy loaf of bread . As the rain and fog closed in, we explored a passel of museums: the Sausalito Bay Model , the Conservatory of Flowers , Zeum , and the Bay Area Discovery Museum's new exhibit . I also tried to convince all and sundry that the Exploratorium is a great  Read more...

Baking Bread with a Toddler

by Graham Charles

November 21, 2008

As we enter into cooler weather, indoor pursuits beckon, and what could be better than baking with a toddler? I'm all over the "easy" way -- buy some pre-made dough, roll it out, and cookie cutter it to death -- but I've found that this bread recipe is nearly as easy and allows for a lot more fun, to boot. It's derived from a no-knead bread recipe I found in the New York Times ( here's the  Read more...

The Exploratorium for Toddlers

by Graham Charles

November 14, 2008

Now that the rainy season has befallen us so decisively, our thoughts as parents turn oxymoronically to indoor "outings." The Academy of Sciences is a gem when not crowded, of course, but I've been surprised at how many parents of young children ignore the Exploratorium. Many friends of toddlers I know have suggested that this hands-on science museum is targeted at reading kids of  Read more...

November Outlook: Stay in the House!

by Graham Charles

October 31, 2008

There's something about the first rainy days of autumn that make you just want to curl up inside, sit your kid in front of a lot of blank paper, and drink warm cider. In the past, I just would not have gone for that, since I'm one of those "outing" parents who thinks that every day should bring an adventure. (My two-year old daughter's first question of the morning nearly every day is  Read more...

Six San Francisco Locales for Inspiring Your Child's Imagination

by Graham Charles

October 14, 2008

The folks at Savvy headquarters have asked us this "List Tuesday" to describe some local spots that really inspire kids to creative, free-form imagination. We all love our museums and zoos, but sometimes kids need a little more undirected, unrestricted space. Here are some of my favorite "Imagination Zones": 1. The Beach. I know of few free-form, fully pliable environments that equal the  Read more...

Savvy Siblings: Two tips for keeping the toy wars at bay

by Graham Charles

September 10, 2008

The folks at Savvy HQ are writing about siblings today. My two-year old Fern has two more months before her sister comes along, but we're already gearing up for the coming rivalry. We've instituted two toy-rationing systems that (we hope) will ease the pain of the next twenty years of enforced sharing. Or, at least, keep the screaming to a minimum. Toy Jail Where do toys go when  Read more...