Orange County Children's Book Festival

If you are looking for something FREE and absolutely fantastic to do this weekend look no further- Make sure to visit the Orange County Children's Book Festival. There really is something for children of all ages to experience at the Orange County Children’s Book Festival. Everyone enjoys the multiple stages with the author and illustrator presentations and they are mesmerized by the professional storytellers. From the OC Family Main Entertainment stage you can relax and enjoy the family friendly entertainment and hear celebrity authors share “inside scoop” about their latest books. Jamie Lee Curtis will be the featured author with a reading from her latest book, Big Words for Little People, which will be followed by a book signing. There will be absolutely something for everyone! Want more? Sure!

How about a trackless train ride around the OCC campus for kids and parents? A favorite year after year is the children craft corner where kids make their own book markers, visors and other “make it take it” keepsake items. There’s also an abundance of and family fun activities such as face painting, crazy hair styling, and animal petting area, musicians, dancers, balloons, readings, drawings and so much more. The best part is that admission and parking are absolutely free. For additional info click here.

Orange County Children's Book Festival

Sunday October 5th, 2008

Orange Coast College

2701 Fairview Road, Costa Mesa, CA 92626

Admission and Parking are FREE!!! see you there!!

Kidsfaire- America's Family Expo

Mark your calendars for next weekend, Oct 4-5th 2008. Kidsfaire-America's Family Expo will be held at the Orange County Fairgrounds. What is Kidsfaire? It's the largest event of it's kind in the nation. Kidsfaire is a family expo featuring family entertainment, interactive pavillions and stage shows. There is so much entertainment I don't even know where to begin!! First off is Character Central. It's basically a kids dream come true with characters from their favorite shows. Dora, Care Bears, Curious George, Spongebob and Clifford The Big Red Dog to name a few. There will also be interactive areas such as the Anaheim Ducks Hockey rink where the amazing Anaheim Ducks bring their first-ever mobile Hockey Rink to Kidsfaire where your kids get the chance to be hockey pros for the day. Professional Hockey instructors will guide your kids though the rink to learn the greatest moves. I could go and on with the many cool shows and activities that you will find at Kidsfaire but why not check it out yourself. For additional information click here. Kidsfaire- America's Family Expo Orange County Fairgrounds Costa Mesa, CA Oct 4-5th 10 am to 5pm Admission $8.00 adults $5.00 children 2-12 You can find $1.00 discount coupons at your local McDonalds.

Free Admission to Disneyland in 2009

It's likely that you heard the big announcement from Jay Rasulo this week regarding the big celebration for Disney parks in 2009. Everyone can go free to Disneyland or Walt Disney World on their birthday. You must first register for this on Disneyparks.com. Then you have to bring the print out with you, along with some ID, to the ticket booth to redeem your free admission.

Visitors with annual or multi-day passes can either get a one-day one-park ticket for use in the next year; a "Fastpass" for four rides for up to six people; or a card with a dollar amount equal to the free ticket, usable toward merchandise and other purchases.

Each adult must register seperately on the website, but you can add your children to the same registration so that they can also redeem the free admission or other perk.

The idea here is that families often choose destination to celebrate events such as birtherdays, so the free admission encourages the whole family to come to the park. This reminds me of the good ole days when the park used to give away a car-a-day! We are annual passholders, so I am excited to get the free gift card and get some Christmas gifts for the kids.

Entertainment Book 2009

The Entertainment Book 2009 just arrived in our mailbox today. In case you've never heard of this book, they are published regionally and have amazing bargains and free things like food, entertainment and retail purchases. For example, our book has 8 free admission tickets to AMC Movie theaters. It doesn't take much for this book to pay for itself. Yes, this post sounds like one big infomercial, but I really do use this book and I love the values. There are so many great ideas found inside of new places to visit that offer you discounts or free admission. The books are priced from $25 and up and are worth every cent. If you order right now, they are including free shipping. If you want to wait a while, the 2009 books get discounted after the first quarter of 2009, but why wait when you get the book today and start saving tomorrow. (oh my, can I sound any cheesier?)

End of Summer

For those of you with kiddo's who haven't yet started the mandatory years of education, how do you mark the end of Summer? Is it the weather? Is it some annual event? For our family, I suppose it's the Halloween decorations going up. What about your family?

LA County Fair - Fun Stuff

While the OC County Fair just barely wrapped, there are some fun things to see and do with the kiddos at the LA County Fair in Pomona. Meet and Greet with Barbie in her Dream House - Girls of all ages will get a kick out of meeting Barbie, live and in-person. This is located at the Family MarketPlace. Barnyard Racers - the fasting pigs this side of Farmer John's place. Located in Fairview Farms and racing throughout the day. Extreme Canine Stunt Dog Show - These are some amazing dogs doing stunts and tricks that will make your fur stand on end. Located in the Bark Park. The fair is open Wednesday through Sunday with late hours on Friday and Saturday nights. Admission is $17 for adults and $7 for children. Directions

Mickey's Trick or Treat Party - 2008

Summer is pretty much over and that means one thing in our family- Halloween is just around the corner. It also means Halloween Time at the Disneyland Resort. This year, the newly named "Mickey's Trick or Treat Party" will be held at Disney's California Adventure. I've attended the event for the past two years with my kiddos and we've had a great time. "Mickey's Trick or Treat Party" is a special ticketed event at Disney's California Adventure . You and your family are encouraged to dress up ad enjoy the special decorations, dance stations (which had to be the biggest hit of the night with my kids), yummie trick or treat stations, character greets(my daughter Lauren's dream came true last year when she met Cinderella), and of course your favorite California Adventure rides. It really is a great event. "Mickey's Trick or Treat Party" will be held on October 3, 10, 16, 17, 22, 23, 24, 28, 29, 30, and 31. If you are planning to attend make sure to buy your tickets as soon as possible. Tickets sell out fast!! Advance tickets, on sale now are $29. The Friday nights always sell out quickly as well as the dates closer to Halloween. Costumes are permitted, but not masks.

Passholder discount is available for the following dates: October 3, 16, 22, 23, 28, 29

There is no discount available for the October 31 event. All tickets for that date are $37.

Tickets available on-line at http://www.disneyland.com/tickets Or by calling 714-781-4400 $3.00 shipping charge

Discounted tickets available to Annual Passholders on Disneyland's Annual Passholder web site: http://www.disneyland.com/ap

No charge for kids age two and under. Limit of 8 tickets per event.

Playhouse Disney

I don't know about your kiddos but my kiddos are obsessed with The Disney Channel and Playhouse Disney in particular. The Playhouse Disney Show at Disney's California Adventure is a must visit if you have little ones. Last Friday my daughter and I caught an afternoon show and boy did she love it. The show is about twenty minutes long and your kids will be jumping for joy!! Your kids will dance and sing along to their favorite characters from the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Handy Manny, Winnie the Pooh and The Little Einsteins. The stage opens up and the show begins with the planning of Minnie's Surprise Birthday party. It's followed by a revolving stage that brings your kid's favorite show to life. My daughter loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Little Einsteins. She couldn't get enough!! She danced and sang through the whole show. The Playhouse Disney show is geared for toddlers and preschoolers. It's a must if you have a toddler or preschooler.

For additional information click here

Winner

I wish I had more than 1 dvd to give away but I'm hoping to do another giveaway this week. Using Random.org- the winner of the giveaway is drumroll... comment # 6- Laura who said "Ooh, ooh. Pick me! I read your blog all the time and love your great ideas!" Congrats Laura- shoot me an email at mom@daytrippingmom.com Thanks for participating!!

Giveaway and Review- Jim Henson Company- Tortoise vs Hare

Update: I've decided to keep this open for one more day. You have until Monday at 9pm to leave a comment and enter the Giveaway. Good Luck!!! If our family is out on an adventure that requires a drive that is longer than a half hour , I always make sure to bring a good movie along for the kids. I had the opportunity to receive a copy of The Jim Henson Company's - Tortoise vs Hare. I watched this with the kids and we laughed and laughed. Jay Leno is the voice of Murray the Hare and Danny Glover voices Walter the Tortoise. The film takes place 15 years after the original race and both Walter and Murray are ready for a rematch, only this time they bring along their children. Their children however, are not as thrilled to compete against each other. The race teaches Walter and Murray that there is more to life than grudges and competition. It's a great film with a great message. I loved that I found this movie as cute and funny as my children did. Without giving too much away - I promise you will find this to be a great movie that both children and adults will enjoy. The film will be released on DVD Tuesday September 9th. I have an extra copy of the film that I would love to giveaway. If you would like to enter the giveaway just leave a comment under this post and I will pick a winner at random on Sunday evening. Good luck!!

Bob the Builder Leaves OC

Leaving September 7th is Bob the Builder–Project: Build It, a traveling museum exhibit at Taco Bell Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana.

This 2,000 square-foot multimedia exhibit is sponsored nationally by Indianapolis-based Delta Faucet Company and inspired by HIT Entertainment’s top-rated television series, Bob the Builder – Project: Build It. My son loves Bob the Builder and this exhibit is right up his alley. Catch it before it's gone! Discovery Science Center, 2500 N Main Street, Santa Ana

714-542-2823

Balboa Island Ferry-one of only two Southern California's ferries

I can't remember what my daughter was watching last week that mentioned a ferry ride- I think it was Dora the Explorer, but I'm not to sure. As soon as the show was over she started asking me about ferries. I explained to her what a ferry was and told her that this weekend I would take her on a ferry ride. There are only two ferries (I'm not counting the Catalina ones) in operation in Southern California. One is the ferry that runs between Coronado Island and San Diego and the other is the one that connects Balboa Island and the Balboa Peninsula. It's a fun five minute ride that you and your children will enjoy. We always make a day trip out of it by exploring Balboa Island, one of my favorite places in Southern California. I know you might be asking why would she start blogging about the beaches when summer is almost over? It just so happens that I think the best time to explore the Southland beaches is after Labor Day. September and the beginning of October are always warm and the crowds have dwindled down across the beach cities. It is the perfect time to visit. The ferry ride is fun and totally inexpensive. Adults are $1.oo , children 5-12 ,are 50 cents and cars with drivers are $2.oo(each passenger is additional) and children under 5 are free. Your kids will love it and you will love exploring Balboa Island. For additional info click here. Balboa Island Ferry Balboa Peninsula Fun Zone area (follow the signs)

Hours: Ferries leave every few minutes

Sunday through Thursday: 6:30 a.m. to midnight,

Friday and Saturday nights until 6:30 a.m. to 2 a.m.

SUMMER HOURS 6 am to 2 am Daily

Rates:

Car and Driver: $2.00;

Motorcycles and Mopeds: $1.50;

Adult with Bicycles: $1.25 cents;

Children with bicycles $.75 cents

Newport Bay Harbor Cruises

My kiddos love anything and everything that has to do with the ocean. If your kids sound anything like mine, then you have to check out The Fun Zone Boat Company's Newport Bay Harbor Cruises. I had the opportunity to take the kiddos and we had a blast. I've done the tour with and without children and they both have been so much fun. The Fun Zone company currently offers 45 and 90 minute cruises which depart from the Fun Zone in Balboa Peninsula(next to the Ferris Wheel) and offer a narrated tour of the area and a great look at the many sea lions and otters that inhabit the area. I've experienced both the 45 and 90 minute tour and if you can splurge on the 90 minute one. It's only a couple of dollars more and well worth the price. Trust me on this your family will love it!! Fun Zone Boat Company Harbor Cruises Balboa Peninsula, Newport Beach Children 5 and under free Children under 12- $7.00 Adults- $14.00 for 45 minutes, $17.00 for 90 minutes Tours depart every hour from 11 am to 7pm For additional info click here