Spots around Los Angeles where families can have fun indoors.
Indoor Fun
Go On Tour with Kids in L.A. Factories
Got a golden ticket? You’d need one to enter Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. But if you want to peek inside some of Southern California’s most interesting factories, usually all you have to do is ask. Local factories – which make everything from fresh marmalade to olive oil and, yes, chocolate – gladly open their doors to families looking to see the inner workings of their production process. Factory tours give...
Birthdays That are So L.A.
Kick your child’s star power up a notch on their special day the L.A. way, with a one-of-a-kind celebration served up with a touch of the delicious, the wild and a side of the fantastic. Why not knock a few things off the bucket list while they’re young, and let the adults come along for the enchanting ride? Around-the-World Adventures in Ice Cream The idea began, once upon a time,...
Local VR Rooms Transport You to Other Worlds
If you could strap on a headset and be transported to a different time and place, would you? With virtual reality, or VR, you can. In reality, you’re just moving around in a pod (a room about 12 feet square) but the 360-degree multisensory digital experience feels more real than real itself. And the ever-evolving VR technology is light years ahead of traditional family games. Here’s a rundown on a...
The COOP Woodland Hills Opens at The Village at Westfield Topanga
Parents looking for a place to cool off in the valley's hot summer weather just got a new place to tuck into. The COOP, a kids party and playspace, is now open at the Village at Westfield Topanga. The COOP is a fun indoor playground that offers an area for Moms to work with free wi-fi, but also has a number of different areas for kids of different ages. I was...
Out, About and Inclusive In L.A.
There was a time when “accessible” meant someone with a disability could get in the front door, and maybe up to the second floor – and after that they were on their own. These days, accessibility goes way beyond that, and many L.A. attractions are making it part of their mission. “Accessibility is more than just adding a ramp,” says Peter Martineau, marketing events manager at Aquarium of the Pacific...
Giving Kids a Strong Hold on Fitness
If monkeys had a playroom, it would be the Stronghold Climbing Gym in Downtown Los Angeles. Located in the historic building that once housed the California Edison Company’s Los Angeles #3 Steam Power Plant, in the Brewery Arts Complex, this state-of-the-art facility houses hundreds of opportunities to scale walls and find routes to the top, across and under various types of simulated climbing terrain. For those who climb, it seems...
On The Record: Becoming a Butterfly Parent
Rhinoceroses are strong, have endurance and thick skin. A rhino charges toward its goals and never stops until it gets there. As a child, my bedtime stories were not about princesses and unicorns. They were about living life like a rhinoceros and not a cow. When I became a mother and had little rhinos of my own, I naturally wanted the same for them – to be strong and determined....
Mystery Solved! If it weren’t for those meddling kids…
I just experienced the most spectacular date night out with friends unique to all the fun things to do in LA, but unfortunately, I can’t tell you about it. Well, that’s not entirely true. I can tell you a little. Last month, my husband and I planned a “triple” date with friends and headed to the Westside to partake in Escape Key Entertainment’s interactive, live-action game. Up to six people...
Community News: Getting In the Swing of Things
Imagine a picturesque Sunday morning. A cluster of fluffy cumulus clouds peppers a saturated blue sky as the vivid sun slowly stretches its legs across the horizon. The sounds of chirping birds and the click of a distant water sprinkler wallows in your ear. It’s as if Ansel Adams is supposed to capture this moment, but it’s only you and your seven iron as a ball rests 145 yards from...
Stay Scholastic This Summer
Since 2009, Scholastic has held its Summer Reading Challenge to keep kids excited about books. So far, kids have logged more than one billion reading minutes worldwide in the global online program. For this year summer’s program, the theme is “Be A Reading Superhero.” Besides logging their minutes online, kids will also get to unlock stories from authors who will reveal how they became reading superheroes. As part of...
Ready For Summer With Pie
When strawberries come into season in the spring, at my house we start out by just bingeing on them plain – or with maybe a touch of whipped cream. Eventually, we get around to some shortcake. Valerie Gordon of Valerie Confections – with locations in L.A., Echo Park and at Grand Central Market downtown – offers a recipe for another strawberry classic, strawberry-rhubarb pie. “Kids love pies,” says the mom...
PINZ Bowling Center To Debut Refurbished Lanes and Community Program
PINZ Bowling Center in Studio City will host a ceremonial “first bowl” to break the ribbon on a $250,000 revamp of its 32 lanes, and launch a new “Bowling Birthdays Are Best!” program to raise charitable contributions to benefit kids and families in the San Fernando Valley. The festivities, kicking off at 3 p.m. Aug. 5, will include civic and community leaders, Los Angeles police officers and firefighters, and an...
Nintendo Debuts New Titles at E3
The National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) team attended E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) June 16-18 at the L.A. Convention Center. At the gaming industry’s annual trade show, throngs of eager gamers get their first peek at thousands of new titles and technologies. We met with NAPPA favorite Nintendo, and learned about dozens of upcoming releases for the Wii and handheld 3DS. Here are a few that we’re super excited for this...
Los Angeles Events: The Humpback Whales Kid Critics Challenge
Hosted by L.A. Parent, MacGillivray Freeman Films, and the California Science Center Calling all future film critics! Kids and their families are invited to join L.A. Parent, MacGillivray Freeman Films, and the California Science Center as we dive into the mysterious world of one of nature's most awe-inspiring marine mammals, the humpback whale. Come see an exclusive free screening, one of many Los Angeles events, of the IMAX film Humpback Whales 3D on Saturday, June 27, 2015, at the California Science Center's IMAX Theater. Interactive family whale...
With Disney’s Playmation, the Game Jumps Off the Screen
As a child, I would have never imagined play quite like this. As part of the digital generation, I am used to screen-based games that keep players in their seats. But a new gaming system called Playmation, unveiled by Disney Consumer Products in L.A. in early June, aims to get digital kids up and moving. Created in partnership with Hasbro, Playmation employs toys and wearable gear powered by smart technology...
Beat the Heat With Bowling
Looking for summer activities that will keep you indoors when the mercury soars? For the eighth straight year, kids can bowl free during Kids Bowl Free. Children ages 15 and younger can sign up at www.kidsbowlfree.com, and they’ll be able to bowl two free games every day this summer at participating bowling centers. More than eight million kids have participated in this program Canoga Park’s Winnetka Bowl, Tarzana’s Corbin Bowling...
Take A Cinematic Journey To Tomorrowland
There are several Disney films based on amusement park attractions – and several Disneyland attractions based on films. In the park’s Tomorrowland, movie-based rides include Star Tours, Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage and Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters. For the first time, Disney is giving an entire land – Tomorrowland – the cinematic treatment. And this leaves questions. With ride-based films such as Pirates of the Caribbean, it was easy to guess...
Party-Time Treats
Food can be a fun part of any party, but can be a real headache if you’re the one doing the planning. Keep it simple (and fun for you) with these great recipes from Home & Family’s Tanya Memme. Tanya’s Birthday Party Popcorn! Everyone loves popcorn! Be a hero at your child’s next party with this! It takes minutes to make, is easy on the wallet and kids love it....
Ooh La La! Let’s Make Art in L.A.
Artist Hervḗ Tullet, bestselling author of “Press Here” (Chronicle Books, 2011) is coming to MOCA and LACMA this month to shake things up, squish stuff together and fire the imaginations of your children while promoting his latest interactive book, “Mix It Up!” Not familiar with these popular books or the creative mind behind them? Even this adult found it hard to resist the urge to tilt, turn and touch the...
Creation Classes and Workshops For Little ‘Makers’
The “maker” movement, a DIY wave that has swept the country, has plenty to offer kids and families. If your child loves to make art, repurpose used materials into new inventions, design robots, or build giant structures for the sole purpose of knocking them back down, here are some options that are sure to challenge and delight. What happens when you get a group of enterprising artists and environmental designers...
Telling Tales: Secrets For Sharing Your Story So Kids Will Listen
Once upon a time, when my little girl was 5, our family took a trip to Paris. While my husband was out handling the business part of our business vacation, Lauren and I went to visit the Louvre. It was a November weekday and the museum was wonderfully uncrowded – except for a large tour group from Japan blocking our view of the Mona Lisa. Determined that we would gaze...
A Local Crop of Kids’ Books
Shop these independent stores for personal recommendations and great family fun By Ronna Mandel If you only shop online, you’re missing out on input from some of our city’s most enthusiastic and knowledgeable kid-lit experts. To find bookstores that felt “just right” for this roundup, I channeled Goldilocks and made tracks for the independents – the magical, privately owned bookstores located throughout Los Angeles. Pages, A Bookstore: 904 Manhattan Ave.,...