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Budget friendly summer fun...Part 2!
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So you’ve tried a few (or all!) of the previous suggestions and have once again heard those terrible words from your children. “Mom, I’m bored!” What now??
The good news is that there are fun FREE activities to be found in your own Minneaplis area community! Have you tried:
1. Park Hopping! Pile the kids in the car, bring some snacks and drinks and off you go! How many times have the kids commented on how they’d love to go to the park that is on the way to school? Or the grocery store? Or Grandma’s house? Now is the time! You can stop at one park or you can go “park hopping”! Park hopping entails stopping at any park that looks fun and letting the kids out to play. This is a wonderful form of FREE entertainment that can last for hours. Not only will your children make new friends, you may too!
2. The Library! Most of us remember the “Shhhhhh’s” from the librarians but this is not the case any longer! Many libraries throughout the Minneapolis/ St. Paul area offer free activities for kids of all ages. Dakota County for example offers everything from baby story time to arts and crafts to Guitar Hero competitions and Harry Potter discussions. (http://services.co.dakota.mn.us/forms/libCalendar.aspx?id=64) Simply do an internet search for your local county library system. Most metro counties have a listing online or at each location that contain the dates and times of each activity. With as many libraries as there are in the metro, you can find something for almost every day of the week!
3. Museum Adventure Pass at the Library! Even more fun can be found through the library with a Museum Adventure Pass. This pass can be checked out like a book and taken to many local museums for free admission or special benefits to the free museums. Just a few of the local museums included are: Bell Museum of Natural History, Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Hennepin History Museum, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum and even the Minnesota Zoo! For more information, check out www.melsa.org! (Many libraries also offer free admission to the Children’s Museum in St. Paul through the Passport to Play program.)
4. Your local Parks and Rec Department! There are many free activities offered through most Minneapolis area Parks and Recreation departments! Many local communities have Puppets in the Park that include songs along with the puppet show. A few snacks and some playtime after at the park and you have just whiled away a lazy summer morning for free! Need some time to run your errands without saying NO repeatedly? Check out your local Park and Rec for FREE supervised summer park play time! Simply fill out an emergency contact form and let your child play under competent supervision for a few hours while you run errands or simply relax at home! (Check out http://www.ci.apple-valley.mn.us/Publications/Newsletters/current_park_and_recreation.pdf for an example!) Information on your town's Park and Recreation department can be found on your city's website! (An internet search for your city should pull up the results.)
Enjoy taking advantage of these free activities and have fun exploring the community with your children!
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