Red Kite Roundup - A special show for children with autism

Chicago Children’s Theatre presents a special show for children with autism as part of their education initiative, The Red Kite project. The Red Kite project is a seven month development workshop and co-production that culminates with a multi-sensory installation performance for children with autism at Chicago Children’s Museum.

Red Kite Roundup takes place at Millennium Park February 1-20. The show is intended for children ages 5-14, and it allows children with autism to take part in Chicago Children’s Theatre’s immersive, simulated camping experience. Actors guide children on their own personal journey complete with chasing butterflies, hiking and camping under the stars.

The show is limited to just 10 children (with an adult) to meet the special needs of each child in attendance. All tickets are $10 each and advanced reservations are required. For more information, visit
www.explorechicago.org or www.theredkiteproject.org.

Printers Row Lit Fest

The Printers Row Lit Fest (or as I still call it, Printers Row Book Fair) is taking place this Saturday and Sunday in Printers Row, around Dearborn Street from Congress to Polk. This event is the largest free outdoor literary event in the Midwest.

This may sound like an event for adults, but the family entertainment is reason enough to bring the whole family on down for this one. The family fun at Lil' Lit Park is presented by Navy Pier, and includes music performances, kids theater shows, and appearances by some of Navy Pier's favorite characters. The fun kicks of on Saturday with a performance by local kiddie rock legend Justin Roberts. He's playing a 45 minute set with the Not Ready for Naptime Players starting at 10:15, and a few more concerts during the course of the festival.

The entertainment lineup:

Sunday, June 13

10:15 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Justin Roberts and the Not Ready for Naptime Players perform

11 a.m.to 11:15 a.m.
Patch& Pickle Show: Extreme Pirate Make-Over

11:15 a.m. - 11:45 p.m.
Carolyn Crimi, author of "Henry and the Crazed Chicken Pirates"

11:45 a.m. to Noon
Patch Pickle Show: MasterPatch Theatre

Noon to 12:45 p.m.
Susan Meddaugh author of "Martha Speaks"

1 p.m. to 2 p.m.
Peter Yarrow performs "Songs For Little Folks"

2 p.m. to 2:15 p.m.
Patch & Pickle Show: Extreme Pirate Make-Over

2:15 p.m. to 2:45 p.m.
Pam Allyn, author of "What to Read When" will read from various children's books

2:45 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Patch & Pickle Show: MasterPatch Theatre

3 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Justin Roberts and the Not Ready for Naptime Players perform

3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
World Kids Show

Sunday, June 13

10:15 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
Patch & Pickle Show: Extreme Pirate Make-Over

10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
World Kids

11:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
Justin Roberts and the Not Ready for Naptime Players perform

12:30 p.m. to 1:15 p.m.
The Radio Disney AM 1300 Road Crew

1:15 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Patch & Pickle Show: MasterPatch Theatre

1:30 p.m. to 2 p.m.
The Dot & Susan Show

2:15 p.m. to 2:45 p.m.
Tom Lichtenheld, author of "Shark vs. Train"

2:45 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Patch & Pickle Show: Extreme Pirate Make-Over

3 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Justin Roberts and the Not Ready for Naptime Players perform

3:45 p.m. to 4:15 p.m.
W. Nikola-Lisa author of "How We Are Smart"

Kids Day America and Mayfest

The summer street fests are underway, and this weekend's Mayfest in Chicago's Lakeview area is starting off by featuring "Kids Day America" that your whole family can enjoy. From 10am - 1pm, before the regular Mayfest activities begin, you can bring the kids out for a fair that will be fun and will also educate and teach kids about health and safety.

Your family can enjoy free food, fun, face painting, balloons and prizes, and you can also take part in free health screenings and safety demonstrations. There's also a "Kids Day America Healthy Habit Contest" that your kids can enter.

After the family fest, your whole family can enjoy the rest of Mayfest with great food and live music going on all day.

On Sunday morning at Mayfest, it's the Mayfest Pet Parade. I checked this out last year, and it was was fun celebration with dogs everywhere! Pet owners and their pets took turns on the big stage, vying for titles such as "Best Looking," "Largest," "Owner Look-a-Like" and more. There's even a "Pet Trick" feature that your kids will love!

The festivities take place around the intersection of Ashland (1600W) and Barry (3100N).

Hands on History - Civil War Days

While it's one thing for kids to read about history, it's another for them to enjoy a completely immersive experience where they can feel like they're living it. This weekend is Naper Settlement's annual Civil War Days, where visitors can watch more than 300 Civil War re-enactors act out a day from the past.

You'll get to see troops camping on site, and at 2:30pm a bugle will sound to wake them up and summon them to battle. Complete with rifles, cannons and even surgeons attending to the injured, it's an interactive history lesson that kids can't get in school.

The weekend fun also offers food, and shopping for Civil-War era reproduction products and books and merchandise.

The event runs from 10am - 4pm this Saturday and Sunday, and is $12 adults, $11 seniors and $8 for kids 4-17. Visit the web site for a full schedule of events, www.napersettlement.org

New! Great Bear Wilderness at Brookfield Zoo

I have a real soft spot for Brookfield Zoo, as my very first full-time job was in the zoo's marketing department back in the early 90's. So I'm really excited to hear about a new exhibit opening up that will be the largest exhibit the zoo has ever had - Great Bear Wilderness!

The new exhibit opens to the public this weekend on May 8, and will offer visitors a "National Park-like experience," with exhibit space designed to replicate prairie, temperate forest and tundra landscapes. This naturalistic 7.5-acre habitat will feature iconic North American animals — polar bears, grizzly bears, Mexican gray wolves, bald eagles, bison, and a raven — and will teach guests about the animals’ past, present and future, their deep cultural significance, and the survival challenges they face.

There's a special opening day celebration being held this Saturday from 10am - 3:30pm, starting with a Native American blessing from members of the American Indian Center of Chicago. Then at 11am with be the grand entry with a procession of Native dancers in full regalia, followed by intertribal dancing.

Other special activities on opening day include:
11:35 to 11:50 a.m. - Native American flute music
Noon - 12:25 p.m. - Native American dancing and presentations
12:30 to 12:50 p.m. - Storytelling about bear families
1:00 to 1:25 p.m. - - Native American dancing and presentations
1:30 to 1:50 p.m. - Native American flute music
2:00 to 2:25 p.m. - - Native American dancing and presentations
2:30 to 2:50 p.m. - Storytelling about bear families

And all through the celebration, visitors can enjoy special appearances by polar bear, grizzly bear, Mexican gray wolf, bald eagle, and bison costume characters.

Find out more on Brookfield Zoo's web site at: http://www.brookfieldzoo.org

Toddlin' Thursdays at Navy Pier

Navy Pier is calling all Toddlers on Thursdays with "Toddlin' Thursdays," through April 8. Every Thursday you'll find plenty to do, with singing, stories, music and even special character appearances from Bob the Builder, Spider Man, Ronald McDonald and more!

Performance schedule:

• February 11 Super Stolie & the Rockstars
  
• February 18th Mr. Singer & The Sharp Cookies
  
• February 18th WTTW Kids Readers are Leaders with Miss Lori and Mr. Brandon
  
• February 25th Raisin' Rhyme
  
• March 4th Nelson Gill
  
• March 11th Thaddeus Rex
  
• March 18th Super Stolie
  
• March 25th Ella Jenkins
  
• April 1st (No Performances today) Bonny Bunny will meet with your little ones
  
• April 8th Od Tapo Imi
  

Plus your toddler can enjoy storytelling from "World Kids at Navy Pier" at 3:30 every Thursday (and 11 and 3:30 on Wed and Fri too!)

One daunting thing I've found about visiting Navy Pier is the parking price. There a parking discount coupon available for $10 off parking with a $45 purchase from select vendors - click here for coupon.

And here's some more coupons from some great vendors at Navy Pier.

Tumble Time

This morning I took my little rocker Mia to something new - something that was NOT a music class! We went to Jump Ahead Academy at 2260 N. Clark St., a relatively new fitness center for kids that introduces them to gymnastics and a variety of athletic activities.

Unfortunately for us, Mia started the day earlier than normal and in a pretty grumpy mood. She wasn't her usual happy self, but she perked up when we first entered the place and was excited to check everything out.

Our class started in a room with various gymnastics stations. There were tumbling mats and apparatus like trampolines, a balance beam, a mini climbing wall and other padded pieces for jumping and climbing. Our instructor was Katy, one of the owners, and she was awesome. The class was mostly open play, with Katy providing one-on-one time to each child and also gathering them 'round for quick activities like races, trampoline jumping and balance beam walks. This was all new to Mia, and Katy explained the different options and let Mia try things out at her own pace.

Overall, it was a lot of fun... at least until we went into the next room to play with different sports equipment. That's when Mia entered meltdown phase, and our play time was done. After a good 5 minutes of this, Katy saved me with a lollipop for Mia, which was like a magic pill.

I'm deciding if this is a class that Mia will enjoy, since she still seems extremely interested in music and dance, but I would absolutely recommend it. It was a nice, clean facility with fun activities, and even if it's not for Mia right now, I can see us trying it again.

You can visit the web site here: www.jumpaheadacademy.com.

Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

Thursday morning, we bundled up Mia and headed over to the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum. I’ve been wanting to take Mia there for quite some time, especially for some of the hands-on animal activities that take place a few times each month for kids her age. Unfortunately this was not a day when this activity was taking place, but I thought that she would enjoy the Judy Istock Butterfly Haven. Mia loves butterflies – at least in theory, based on her strong appreciation for pictures of butterflies, a stuffed butterfly she has, and her favorite butterfly barrette. I had been warned by another mom with a daughter the same age that it might be a bit intimidating for her, since the butterflies can fly right up into the little ones’ faces.

At any rate, when we arrived at the Museum we asked for suggestions on activities that a 20 month old might enjoy. We were told to try out the children’s Discovery Center on the first floor, which is a gated nature-themed play area for the younger kids.

So we headed into the museum, and the first thing we noticed – hard to miss – was an enormous, life-size (seemed larger than that to me) stuffed polar bear, taxidermy-style. Pretty impressive, and the other kids seemed enthralled, but Mia was terrified! I had her put her head down and make her look the other way as we walked past. The stuffed cougar, however, got her all excited and roaring.

The first room we went into had an exhibit with water tables that kids could interact with, but this was too advanced for Mia. We walked through the rest of the room, and came across lots of animals – the kinds you’d find out there in the wilds of Illinois. Again, much of this was lost on Mia, who would be much more entertained seeing farm animals as opposed to tarantulas, frogs and snakes. For older kids, it’s awesome. With no prompting or prior teaching from me, Mia uttered “Ew!” at the spindly bugs, animal skeletons and other not-so-cute items on display. It’s innate!

The play room for kids was much more Mia’s speed, with non-intimidating animals like a beaver atop a dam, a climbing area with a slide, and nooks and crannies for playing and exploring.

After spending some time in the play room we headed up to the Butterfly haven. It’s a very hot, humid room filled with greenery and flowers, and butterflies everywhere you look. There were not so many butterflies that you felt like you’d step on them or get hit in the face, yet there were enough that they seemed to be in every spot you looked. They were really beautiful, and while many were flying around, many were sitting still so you could get an incredible close up view. Mia was fascinated, and while she seemed a bit apprehensive, she was not scared at all. She moved her hands open and close, imitating the sitting butterflies’ wings opening and closing. She didn’t want to leave, and when we finally exited she kept saying “more more.”

We spent some time walking around the upstairs exhibits, and while activities were geared toward older kids, she enjoyed a few random things that we stumbled upon, like a giant turtle and a penguin’s iceberg that she could walk underneath.

Overall, I was really impressed with the museum and Mia had a great time, but I think she’ll get much more out of it when she’s a bit older. I still would like to take her back for some of the hands-on animal activities, so that she can get another chance to see the butterflies.