Low Cost Summer Movies 2012

It's almost time again for the great second-run summer movies. The information I've tracked down so far for theaters in the Bay Area include:

Century Theaters Cinemark Summer Movie Clubhouse,  including the theaters in Danville, Pleasant Hill, San Jose, Woodland, Napa, Walnut Creek and many more - 10 weeks of movies, that vary slightly from theater to theater. They cost $1.00 each, or you can pre-pay for a 10-movie pass for only $5.00. Each of the individual theater links I clicked on also had a coupon for a discounted child concession pack. Check the link for your local theaters to see which movies are offered which days. It looks to me as though Tuesdays and Wednesdays are the most common days offered, with some theaters offering two discount days, and some theaters offering one. The movies start at 10:00 am

Regal Theaters has a spot reserved on its website for information about its summer movie program, but no information released just yet. You can check this link to the Regal website for any details when they are available. 

The other theaters that have offered free or low cost summer movies in the past so far do not have any mention of a 2012 program on their websites, but I will keep checking, and update this post if more option appear. Most theaters don't start their summer movies until mid June, so there is still time.

UPDATE -


Regal theaters have released their list of participating theaters and movies. You can see if the theater near you is hosting $1.00 summer movies at their website, here.

Also Rave theaters are offering FREE summer movies. Their online schedule is harder to follow, and it looks like Brentwood is the only bay area theater participating, but you can check it out at the link above.

Sky High Trampoline

Imagine a room filled wall to wall with trampolines. Now imagine several more rooms just like it. That’s Sky High. It’s just as much fun and exhausting as you are imagining.

We have only ever been to the Sky High in Concord, so it is possible the other branches are set up differently. At Concord though, there is one room that is for straight jumping. It’s the biggest room, and it is full of trampolines. They’re even on the walls.

Next there is a room with a pit full of foam at one end. Here you can wait in line, then jump down a long trampoline, jumping into the pit at the end. This is a great photo spot moms!

Another room is dedicated to dodgeball. When my young girls wanted to try it out I was somewhat nervous with all the much bigger teen boys in line to play. I was happily surprised however. While they were fairly ruthless with each other, the bigger kids made a lot of effort to avoid throwing to hard or fast at the little kids. As you can imagine though, it’s an easy situation for accidents to happen. My girls came out smiling, but I did see one little boy take a hit with a foam ball that was not meant for him, and it didn’t look fun.

As for the little kids, they do have one smaller room dedicated to the smaller jumpers. I don’t remember the age cut off, but it was maybe 6 or 7 years old.

In the back they have restrooms, a few video games and vending machines, and tables for birthday parties. We were there once while a party was in progress, and the kids all seemed to be having a great time. I’m not sure what all is included in a party package (the website could tell you if you want more info) but they at least got lots of jumping time, then cake and such at the tables later on.

The cost is paid by the hour. Before you pay a lot up front, try it out for one hour. The first few times we went, we worried that the kids would whine about having to leave after only an hour, but it turns out that jumping constantly for that amount of time is darn tiring. They are almost always ready quit and rest  when our hour is up.

The Concord branch offers a special rate to homeschoolers on Mondays from 1 to 2pm for $6.00 except when local schools are out for breaks or holidays. The regular rate is $10.oo per hour.

ARF in Walnut Creek

The Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF) based in Walnut Creek is at its heart, an animal rescue and adoption center. However, they have many programs that expand beyond simple housing and rehoming of pets, and offer some fun things for kids and families, even ones who are not currently looking to adopt a new pet.

We have attended two events at the ARF facility, a tour, and a birthday party, and enjoyed both. They were very similarly run, with some obvious extras included for the party that I will go over in a bit.

At both events we were toured around the facility, seeing more of the ‘behind the scenes’ areas with the tour than the party. Although the tour was with an older set of kids, so that may have been part of the reason. Our groups started out in both cases, watching a short video about the history of ARF including  how and why former Oakland A’s manager Tony La Russa came to found the animal rescue foundation. We were shown the cats and dogs that were at the center waiting for adoption, and learned about the volunteers that help keep the center running.

At the end of the tour we went to a room that housed a play veterinary hospital and pet store. At the party, the children were all given little stuffed doggies or cats and taught how to take care of them in the play veterinary office. They learned to brush their teeth, give them vaccines, and check in their ears. At the play store, they shopped for things they might need to take care of their new pets at home. Then, in both the tour and the party, we got to meet a live dog and get a lesson on how to safely and politely greet and pet a new dog. This ended the tour, but the party went on to have snacks and cake, and gift opening before coming to an end.

I did not organize or set up either of these events, but was told by the person who set up the tour for us that it was a bit of a challenge to do so.  The parties are apparently the main way the center usually introduces children to the work of the foundation, and she was encouraged to take that path. Eventually she was able to set up a tour without a party, but this may or may not be something ARF is willing or able to do on a regular basis. For a party, on the other hand, there is information on the ARF website, and appears that would be something fairly straightforward to do. Everyone at the party we attended, kids and adults alike, appeared to have a terrific time.

I should also mention that you can of course, just show up and have a look around on your own without the benefit of an organized tour if you want. The animals are there to be seen, and hopefully find new homes after all. There are also some great volunteer opportunities for older kids too. So go check them out!

Free and Low Cost Summer Movies 2011

It seems like every year now, the movie theaters change the way they run their free/low cost summer movie programs. This year AMC theaters has discontinued their $1 summer moviecamp all together. Also, of the theater chains that have cheap summer movie offerings, not all individual theaters participate. So check the links below to find out if your local theater is included in the program. Not to worry though. There are still a lot of other theaters offering summer deals on second run movies. It can be a nice way to get out of the heat and have a little down time with the kids.

From comparing programs, I've noticed that all the movie theaters offer their free or $1 summer kid movies on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, starting this week. The links below will take you to the theater websites, where you can see the list of scheduled summertime movies. The chains that are still running programs are:

Regal Theaters Summer Movie Express offers Movies for $1 at their Fairfield and Dublin theaters.

Brenden Theaters in Vacaville Has movies for $0.99 with courtesy popcorn and drink for the leftover penny. The Concord Brenden Theater also has movies for $0.99, and a special concession pack offered at $3.00

Century Theater's Summer Movie Clubhouse offers a similar program to last year with $1.00 movies, or prepay for all 10 summer movies for $5.00

It is also worth checking your local parks and recreation guide. Some communities will screen older movies outdoors in a park for free, and they can be a lot of fun to attend.

Lindsay Wildlife Museum in Walnut Creek

The Lindsay Wildlife Museum is a true treasure of the East Bay. Not only is it a fun place to see some local wildlife with your family, but they also provide a wonderful public service through their attached wildlife rehabilitation hospital.

We have visited the Lindsay Wildlife Museum many times over the years. Even though not much changes from one visit to the next, the kids and I always have a great time. It is a small museum. You won't need a full day to explore everything, a couple of hours should be plenty of time. There are various live species of native wildlife on display: raptors, reptiles, mammals, and more. They also have some stuffed specimens of the larger animals, like mountain lions, bears, and deer, that would be impractical to house in a smaller place like this. They also have some common small pets, like hamsters, that occasionally come out for petting in a corner of the museum dedicated to educating kids about choosing and caring for a pet.

Some of the wild animals also come out of their enclosures and can be touched. While one is not available at all times, I don't think we've ever visited Lindsay Wildlife Museum when we didn't get to pet a snake or other wild creature at some point while we were there.

In addition to the wildlife displays, there is also a 'Discovery Room' aimed at younger children with wildlife-themed puzzles and toys available to play with. I've found this space to be often disorginized, but my kids have never seemed to mind the occasional missing puzzle piece, and always have a fun time.

Make sure to check the Wildlife Museum's website before planning your trip. Their open hours vary depending on the day of the week. They frequently host school groups, and offer their own classes, and may not open until later in the afternoon on some days.

My daughter took a drawing class recently at the museum, and produced some great drawings. We would love to take more classes, but the cost can be a bit much for us to go on a regular basis. However, I have several friends who have children that attended many of the different classes offered. All of them have only positive, rave reviews about their teaches and their classes.

The wildlife hospital is attached to the same building as the wildlife museum, but has a separate entrance and you cannot get to the hospital from the inside of the museum. The entrance is on the opposite side of the building than the main museum entrance. If you have an injured animal, you would want to drive past the main parking area, to the next driveway, and there you will find the entrance to the wildlife hospital. To my knowledge, tours are not permitted inside the hospital to allow the injured and recovering wildlife as much peace as possible. Teens over 18 years old can volunteer to work in the hospital if they have a passion for helping animals.

If you follow the pathway that runs in from the the wildlife museum, you will come to a playground. This is a fabulous place to have lunch if you want to make a whole day of your visit. Or, if you want to have your kids run a little energy off before they need to be calm and quite around the animals inside.

Larwrence Hall of Science in Berkley

We're big fans of science museums (as you may have been able to tell by the reviews listed here so far), but the Lawrence Hall of Science is one of our favorites. It's among the great hands-on science centers of the Bay Area. It's also a little less expensive than many of the other big science museums, right now running at $6.00 to $9.00 for kids and $12.00 for adults, kids under 3 are free.

One of the things we like best about the Lawrence Hall of Science is that it has generally not overwhelmingly crowded when we've visited. We may have to wait a moment to take a turn with an experiment or a table, but most of the time we don't. Usually the stations we have to ration ourselves with and share the most are the big, new ones in the main lobby. There is usually enough room to move, and take time at each science station without feeling like other as hovering around waiting for us to move.

My oldest daughter took a one-day workshop on animal adaptations that she told me she enjoyed very much. I only peeked through the window from the hall, but the group of kids all looked enthralled with the class.

Some of the exhibits change every few months or so and you can see both the current and upcoming themes on the Lawrence Hall of Science website. There are also many exhibits that stay the same all the time, so not everything will be brand new if you visit a few times a year.

The only thing I've been disappointed in was the planetarium show. It's a fairly small planetarium, so the host/speaker is very accessible for asking questions of, which is nice, but the shows we've seen have been underwhelming. One of the shows we watched was projected with a regular projector as a traditional rectangular screen, which made viewing very difficult for anyone sitting underneath it in the circular room. It seem to be a waste of a domed planetarium to me. On the upside, tickets are very cheap, only $4 (it isn't included in the admission cost). But if you're short on time, or unsure if you want to stop and see a show, I'd pass and stick with the other great options available at the museum.

December 2010 Fun Stuff to Do

Ardenwood Historic Farms: December 4th and 5th 2010 -
This is one of my favorite new holiday traditions. Ardenwood is a historic farm in Freemont. The first weekend in December they have their Christmas festival. They celebreate in Victorian era style. They have carolers, Victorian crafts, the Patterson House is all decked out in Christmas atire, Father Christmas is there, and there is a yule log hunt, plus a lot more. It's a fun place to visit any time of year, but Christmastime is my favorite. Dress warm, since it's an outdoor event.

Crockett's Winder Block Party: December 4th from 1:00pm to 3:00pm -
I've never been to this event, but it sounds like a ton of fun: " Amble down one of Crockett's most historic blocks through the Crockett Library, Crockett Historical Museum, East Bay NTRAK Model RR, and Carquinez Women's Clubs' "Old Homestead". Enjoy: caroling, Christmas stories, crafts, Betty Buttons the Clown with her balloon animals and hats, Don O'Brien and the "Extreme Science Magic Show".
Refreshments provided. FREE!"

Tilden Nature Area Family Restoration Day (Berkley): December 12th -
"Join other families who care about the environment on this action-oriented program. Learn about nature's interrelationships and help remove invasive plants. Make a difference while having fun! Rain cancels. This is a drop in program; no registration is required. For information, call (510) 544-2233. "

Dickens Christmas Fair, San Francisco: Dec. 4, 5, 11, 12, 18, 19, 2010; 11:00am - 7:00 pm -
I've never been to this either, but every review I've read, and everyone I've talked to that has gone enjoyed it. It's a little more pricey than some of the other things on this list, but if you love this time period, you'll probably find it worthwhile.

Holiday Frolic and Snow Park, Martinez: Dec 3rd, 4th, and 5th -
They have snow to play in! How much better can it get than that? (Okay, they have some other fun activities and crafts too) There is a small charge for the snow play and sledding, but most of the events are free here, including a tree lighting and a holiday light parade.

Dunsmuir Historic Estate, Oakland:
I've had some trouble finding specifics for this, such as what dates the Christmas events go on, but several friends say this is a really fun place to visit, so I'm going to list it. If anyone visits, or knows more, please feel free to comment and share!

Local libraries all over the Bay Area are doing tons of fun December activities for families and kids. Check out your local county library's website to see what the branches near you are up to.