Welcome to L.A. Kid Stuff!  A resource for parents, grandparents, caregivers, teachers and anyone interested in providing enriching, fun, cool, unique and did we mention fun (!) events and activities for Los Angeles kids and their families.  We love everything that L.A. has to offer our kids culturally, artistically and recreationally and we’re here to share that with you.

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Please check back regularly for exclusive L.A. Kid Stuff news and tips, and for our regularly updated Weekly Activities and Events section!  As always, have a great day in L.A.!

For this week’s kid and family-friendly event and activities listings, click HERE.

Latest Articles:

Meet Mango! FREE mini mango frozen yogurts at Pinkberry today, March 12, 2010 from 5 p.m. – 9 p.m.

Pinkberry is introducing and celebrating its new flavor by offering free mini cups of frozen yogurt plus toppings today from 5 p.m. – 9 p.m. Using real Alphonso Mangos, which are among the sweetest in the world, Pinkberry’s going orange and betting that you’ll agree that their mango frozen yogurt is more than delicious! Find a Pinkberry near you HERE.

Flutter into spring with butterflies, butterflies and more butterflies

Spring is near and so are beautiful butterflies. Whether you want to learn all about these beautiful winged creatures or want to just marvel at butterflies fluttering before you, check out these butterfly activities and events in Los Angeles.  There’s something for everyone.  (MORE)

Tips and resources for a greener tomorrow for the whole family during the L.A. Environmental Education Fair at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden

Experience a greener tomorrow at The Los Angeles County Arboretum during the L.A. Environmental Fair on Saturday, March 13, 2010. Discover the latest hands-on activities, ready-to-use lesson ideas, and useful resources that are easily incorporated into everyday life from leading organizations that promote environmental education and awareness. (MORE)

Spark creativity and amusement with Hanoch Piven’s Making Faces: Playful Portraits of People You Know at the Skirball Cultural Center

It’s not just because our 3 ½ year old recognized artist Hanoch Piven’s Barack Obama face comprised of chewing gum and an Aladdin lamp that we love the exhibit Making Faces: Playful Portraits of People You Know at the Skirball Cultural Center now open and running through July 18, 2010. You’ll find that the creative portraits and pop culture icons will be fun to identify for your toddlers, teens and everyone in between. (MORE)

Cherry blossoms now blooming at Schabarum Park in Rowland  Heights

The cherry trees at Schabarum Park in Rowland Heights are still relatively young, but their blossoms are no less stunning.  The first blooms have already started to appear along both sides of the mile-long walkway in the pristine park.  Pack your kids, your family and a picnic and hurry to the park to take a storybook stroll alongside the iconic beauties.  The cherry trees bloom for just a teeny bit of time… (MORE)

Happy 51st Birthday Barbie!
$3 Barbie is a present to Barbie fans everywhere

If anyone makes plastic look good, it’s Barbie, and at 51, she looks fabulous! In celebration of Barbie’s 51st birthday on March 9, 2010, select retailers are offering the 1977 Barbie for the 1959 price of just $3!  Decked out in a pink satin mini-dress with matching boa and platform shoes, this Barbie is appropriate for any decade.  Be sure to call the store first to save yourself a trip to a sold-out location.  We’re checking Target and Toys r Us and crossing our fingers.  The offer will only last three days, so find your Barbie before midnight on Saturday, March 13th.  For more information on Barbie’s 51st birthday, click HERE.

Storybook Theatre’s The Emperor’s New Clothes opens at Theatre West

The acclaimed Storybook Theatre will open a four-month run of The Emperor’s New Clothes at Theatre West, 333 Cahuenga Boulevard, beginning Saturday, March 4, 2010. An audience participation musical for children and their families, there’s plenty of adventure, laughs, songs and interactive fun in cheering on the princess, laughing at the inept robbers as they make invisible clothes, marching in the fashion parade, and in warning the emperor that he’s not wearing anything except his funny underwear! (MORE)

Los Angeles kids can skate to Olympic-sized dreams at local ice rinks

Salchow, lutz, axle and toe loop don’t have to be words firmly entrenched in your vocabulary for you to be inflicted with Olympic fever these past few weeks. One look at the glittery outfits of the ice dance and figure skaters, and my 3 ½ year old has declared her first—of many I’m sure—grown-up professional aspiration. Even without children announcing their fondness for the Olympic ice skating sports, we bet that more than a few parents are also dreamily off in the gold-medal futures of their kids. We talked to some local Ice Skating Rinks to see if Olympic fever has been warming their venues (and pocketbooks) and got the deets on how you can take your kids (and yourselves) for a whirl on the ice. (MORE)

Parent date night: First Fridays at the Natural History Museum

If you secretly long for your clubbing days (pre-children), try getting pre-historic with your date night endeavors at the Natural History Museum’s First Fridays series. Dance with the North American Mammals or sip drinks with the main lobby dinosaur skeletons. With a venue like the Natural History Museum, the right combination of live music…(MORE)

Baby Steps to a Greener Life

Now more than ever is the call to environmentalism and conservation more crucial. From the world’s steady climate increase to the suffering Polar bear population, signs of global warming are too prevalent to ignore. Cause for even greater attention is the fact that the way we live our lives can contribute to, or help alleviate, the global warming phenomenon.  Here are some of our ideas to be more green. (MORE)

The California Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights

Today’s kids spend less time playing outdoors than any previous generation. As author Richard Louv identifies in his best selling book Last Child in the Woods, this “nature-deficit disorder” is a real phenomenon that we must try to avoid.  To help us in our New Year’s resolution, we are adopting the California Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights: A list of 10 things each child should have an opportunity to do before the age of 14 that encourages children to participate in outdoor recreational activities and discover their heritage. How many of the things on this list have your children experienced? Check out the LIST and our suggestions on how to live up to the California Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights HERE.

Popular Articles:

Indoor Activity and Play Areas with Wi-Fi for Parents

Whether your kids are going stir-crazy at home because of the rains or it’s too hot outside for a romp at the park, these indoor playgrounds and play areas may just be the remedy for the entire family!  Sometimes anyplace but home seems like the answer.  We checked that all of these locations also have wireless internet service, for parents who need to do double duty and work while the kids are occupied. (MORE)

Mattel Imagination Center wants to know what kids think

If your little one is already opinionated about everything, channel that energy into reviewing something they are most naturally suited for: toys! The Mattel Toy Testers program will give your kids the first opportunity to play with and test toys new to or not even on the market yet. It will hardly seem like “work” when your kids (ages 5 and older) share their very important comments, reviews and opinions...(MORE)

Kid-friendly farmers markets in Los Angeles helps families go green while entertaining the kids

Not only do Famers’ Markets offer locally grown produce which is good for the environment and our local farmers, but the prices on organic goods are often cheaper than what you’ll find at your local Whole Foods or specialty brick and mortar. Add to that the abundance of children’s activities at many of these Farmers markets and it’s a win-win...(MORE)

Parent and me movie matinees around town cater to and welcome babies

Movie theaters, libraries and churches are probably the few places remaining that can legitimately shush a child from disrupting the masses. Luckily, there are places that not only welcome, but cater to parents with loud, crying babies. So if you want to catch a flick but are discouraged because of your baby’s cries, don’t be at the following theatres…(MORE)

Nature centers in and around Los Angeles show kids where the real wild things are — for free!

Head outside and help your kids discover the real wild things in and around L.A. at some area nature centers and wildlife sanctuaries. The L.A. Zoo is always an obvious choice for wild finds but these days admission alone can cost $50 for the family. Nature Centers on the other hand are not zoos, rather wild animal sanctuaries that care for hurt fauna...(MORE)

Chasing choo-choos: train rides and train-related activities for kids in Los Angeles

As serious as your attraction to trains is, you have to think it’s more than just a product of genius marketing by a company who created the allure of a bright-eyed, gentle smiled, albeit totally reticent Choo-Choo named Thomas and his many friends. For your kid that’s crazy for choo-choos, here’s a list of train rides and activities around town. (MORE)

Check out this week’s activities and events in Los Angeles: Monday, March 8 – Sunday, March 14, 2010

Los Angeles has a wealth of opportunities for kids and teens, many of which are low cost or free.  We love everything that L.A. has to offer our kids culturally, artistically and recreationally and we are here to share that with you.  For this week’s kid and family-friendly event and activities listings, click HERE.