Festival of Children

If you are looking for something to do with the family during the month of September make sure to check out the The Festival of Children at the South Coast Plaza. The festival is a monthlong celebration of childhood. Showcasing more than 60 children's charities for support, services, and volunteer opportunities. The festival of Children is presenting over 100 activities, workshops, and performances to children and families and all FREE of charge. The festival kicks off September 4th and runs until the last weekend of the month. Some of the events include arts and crafts brought by the Bowers Museum, prehistoric pets animal show and performances by the Orange County Children's Theater. All activities and events at this California Festival take place at the lower level of the South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa. The best part is that this festival not only showcases children's charities but it also provides some really fun activities for families all free of charge. Here is just a sample of what you can expect on a weekend of the festival. Here is the list of events taking place on Saturday September 5th. Canstruction Exhibit benefiting Orange County Food Bank 10:00 AM Bowers Museum hosts Arts & Crafts (while supplies last) 12:00 PM Color Me Mine 12:00 PM Opening Ceremonies-Boy Scouts Color Guard flag ceremony to open followed by performances by Natalie Mason and The Hi-Tops 12:00 PM The Art of Having Fun: Paint with Color-Me-Mine! 12:00 PM Tickled Pink Face Painting (first 60 served) 12:00 PM "Excellence in the Making" West Coast School of the Arts performance 1:00 PM Performance by the Hi-Tops 1:30 PM Prehistoric Pets Animal Show 2:00 PM "Excellence in the Making" West Coast School of the Arts performance 2:30 PM Anaheim Ballet Performs 3:00 PM Prehistoric Pets Animal Show 3:30 PM Orange County Children's Theatre Performs 4:00 PM For a calendar of events head on over here.

2009 OC Super Fair

We had the opportunity to take a sneak peek last night at the OC Super Fair and let's just say I can't wait to go back- hopefully today. This year the fair is back and better than ever. We had the opportunity to check out Al's Brain which is a fun 3d experience through the human brain featuring Weird Al. You won't want to miss this and it's free with admission. We also had the opportunity to meet Weird Al yesterday. My husband and I grew up listening to Weird Al and it was a treat to talk to him and to have him take a picture with our daughter. She insisted on talking a picture with the guy that was on her ticket and billboard! She is too funny!

I think when we think of the fair we think of the food. Boy oh boy is it good. Good as in tasty but probably not good for the waistline! We were able to try out fried oreos and fried snickers and they were delish!! Not to be missed. Well if you are a fair foodie you might want to head over to the fair on Thursdays. You can have $2.oo food tastings every Thursday from 12-4pm. Featured in the tastings are funnel cake, sliders, baked potato, hot wings, pizza, onion rings, corn dogs and cinnamon rolls.

There are some great admission deals. Every Thursday kids 12 and under are free. Seniors are admitted for $4.00 on Friday, plus Free ferris wheel and merry go round rides all day long. You can also buy a super pass that gives you 23 days of admission with special perks. Super passes are $30 for adults, $25 for seniors and $20 for children 6-12.

Every Thursday in addition to the kids get in free and $2 tastings you can also take advantage of $1 carnival rides. In addition take advantage of the Care Wednesdays which offer free admission when you participate in any of the 4 drives. Wed July 15 Free admission and carnival ride with 5 canned food items. Wed July 22 Free Admission and carnival ride with one new children's book. Wed July 29 one free admission and one carnival ride with one new toy and Wed Aug 5 one free admission and one carnival ride with donation of one new school item.

Admission to the fair is $10 for adults, $7 for seniors, $5 for kids and 5 and under are free.

Hours are Wed-Fri -Noon to Midnight and Sat-Sun 10am to Midnight. Closed Monday and Tuesday.

Parking is $5.

For additional info head on here

Goat Hill Junction Railroad- Costa Mesa-Free Train Rides

I received a tip about another free great train ride for the little ones. The Orange County Model Engineers club offer free rides to the public on the 3rd Saturday and Sunday of the month from 10 am until 3:30pm. . The club has a variety of engines and riding cars. Trains on public ride days are made up of 5 to 6 bench cars that seat 5 to 6 adults and children. The train rides are held at Fairview Park 2625 Placentia Ave Costa Mesa, CA My son is absolutely nuts about trains and railroads and I can't wait to go next Saturday. Hope to see you there!!

Centennial Farm at the OC Fairgrounds Revisited

The Centennial Farm at the OC fairgrounds is open year-round and has free admission (except during the fair when your fair admission also admits you to the farm area). The farm is located just do the left of the main entrance to the fair as well as being just outside the rear entrance to the Pacific Amphitheater. The Centennial Farm is a real working farm. They have cows, chickens, sheep, goats, pigs, chickens and other animals. You can get up close and pet many of them. There are live demonstrations during the week. Call (714) 708-1619 for schedule information and hours of operation. Now through September 21st the farm is open 7 days a week from 9 AM to 4 PM. Here are some fun farm activity sheets that you can download: http://www.ocfair.com/ocf/centennialfarm/Docs/Farm%20Booklet.pdf