KidsOutAndAbout Weekly Newsletter |
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Dear KidsOutAndAbout readers: One of the best things about spring is that it turns all of us into treasure hunters. After a long winter, we adults start scanning the world for signs that life is returning: We notice the first mist of green in a forest's understory, the first brave crocus, the first daffodil. If we point out loud, kids catch on quickly, drawn by the thrill of
seeking what winter was hiding even just a few weeks ago, and they're ready to find magic behind every tree. Of course, in certain parts of North America, spring can be stingy in early April: The calendar may insist it’s here, but the yard is still beige, the trees are still bare, and the only things blooming outside are spreading patches of mud. But there’s no rule that says spring surprises have to come only from Mother Nature! That’s one reason I’m such a fan of egg
hunts. Last year, I wrote an extremely popular step-by-step article showing how to Turn Easter Into a Treasure Hunt, complete with a printable PDF of rhyming clues. It’s right there waiting for you, ready to make you look like a genius with practically zero effort. And if you want to kick it up a notch and invite a crowd, our article Easter Egg Hunts: Tips and Tricks for a Great Party lays out the
strategies for what may be the easiest, fastest, best-bang-for-the-buck kids’ party on Earth. Sure, egg hunts feature prominently in our culture's Easter traditions, but they needn't belong only to Easter, they're a wonderful diversion anytime, in any context. Spring is a season that proves there’s treasure everywhere. Sometimes the universe provides the fun for us. And sometimes we create it ourselves.
—Debra Ross, publisher of
KidsOutAndAbout.com, co-author of The Eclipse Effect: How to Seize Extraordinary Moments to Build Strong Communities
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KidsOutAndAbout.com: Discover more. Do more. Connect more. If you like my publisher's column, you can easily scroll through past columns in the "Notes from Deb" section of our site. |
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- Come make some music at Blue Bear this summer! We have rock band camps for everyone from beginners to total shredders, and also DJ, production, and songwriting camps for the non-rockers of the world. Curriculum is designed to be fun and slyly educational, and every camp culminates in a performance on Friday for friends and family. We'll see you there!
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Toddler Storytime is a 20-30 minute program that uses stories, songs, fingerplays, and movement to help young children ages 1-3 years old develop word and sound recognition, gain background knowledge of how the world works, and encourages families to build social connections with other parents and children.
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Join us for this limited-time tinkering experience for all ages! Experiment together as a family, and prepare to be surprised by your own ingenuity. Leave your mark with highlighters and UV light. Turn familiar shadows into strange creatures and landscapes, and create colorful portraits with long exposure photography. Plus, immerse yourself in surprising artworks that play with color and perception, and explore 700+ hands-on exhibits that will delight the whole family.
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The farm will be open for the Easter Season! We will host numerous large family Easter Egg Hunts at the farm from March 21st though Easter Sunday. All Eggs hunts will be included in the price of admission. Tickets also include unlimited access to Pony Rides, Train and Hay Rides, Petting Zoo, Farm Slide and bounce houses, Tractor Town, Haunted House, and the Car Barn. We will gather in front of the main entrance prior to each hunt. Please remember to bring your own basket.
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Join us for a fun-filled day of farm activities. Want to enhance your experience? Add on camping for an additional fee and sleep under the stars! Slide Ranch's Family Farm Day is an exciting 3.5-hour program, 9:30am-1:00pm, featuring goat milking. Other activities may include visiting our chickens and ducks, harvesting herbs and veggies in our garden, hiking spectacular coastal trails, tidepooling, and more. Discover Slide Ranch's feathered, furry, and wooly friends with your whole family.
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The Easter Bunny makes a stop at Roaring Camp. Hop aboard the Redwood Forest Steam Train to Bear Mountain for an Easter Egg Hunt and participate in Easter activities in Town.
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This behind-the-scenes tour will take you through a facility designed to accommodate all current and future animals at Oakland Zoo, from small birds to large tigers and grizzly bears. It features radiology and surgical suites, a small laboratory, a pharmacy, wide transportation docks, and LEED Gold certification.
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Our Farmstand is open year round and stocked with already harvested veggies, flowers, heirloom dry beans and preserves all organically grown here at Blue House Farm! We also carry sourdough bread and pastries from Rosalind Bakery, local pastured eggs from Antonio & Sons Farm, chicken, pork, and beef products from our friends at Root Down Farm and Markegard Family Grass-fed, organic seasonal fruit from Frog Hollow Farm and Blossom Bluff Orchards, local honey from State Street Honey, and lots of other goodies from our coastside community!
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Cupertino’s Annual Earth and Arbor Day Festival is an interactive event that invites community members of all ages to learn about environmental issues and solutions in a family-friendly atmosphere. Consistently attracting thousands of attendees and dozens of partner organizations, the Earth and Arbor Day Festival features hands-on activities, live entertainment, and delicious food served by local food trucks.
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CHRS is collaborating with Retro Roadshow to put on an amazing event around Sci-Fi, radio, broadcasting, and vintage electronics. We will begin with 45 minutes of presentation guiding attendees through the interconnected history of Science Fiction and Video Games.
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Come search for dinosaur eggs at Eggster's 32nd Annual Egg Hunt and Learning Festival, a fun, free educational event that consists of activity booths, performances, and egg hunts to provide young children with positive experiences on a college campus to encourage them to pursue higher education. This year's theme is Dinosaur Eggscavation, so join us at the Campanile Esplanade on the UC Berkeley campus as we explore the prehistoric world.!
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iD Tech: The World's #1 STEM Summer Camp! BattleBots® Camp? You can only get it here. Roblox Camp? We've got that and more in our Summer '26 lineup. Register today at the top-rated tech camp for 25 years and counting! iD Tech is the very best experience built around your child—their interests, their skill level, their goals for the future. Trusted by 75+ of the world’s top universities and over 1,000,000 parents, iD Tech is where kids and teens learn from the best—coding, game dev, robotics, and more. The future starts at iD Tech! Click here for more information about your local iD Tech opportunities! Virtual camps are also available!
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- Free Spring Mini Photo Session with Shoott - Shoott - Broadway, New York, NY, USA, 04/02/2026 to 04/04/2026, See link for times
- Toddler Plus Storytime - Main Library - Children's Department, 04/03/2026, 10:30am
- Family Storytime - Alameda Free Library - West End Library, 788 Santa Clara Avenue,
Alameda, CA 94501, 04/04/2026, 10:30am
- Family Storytime - Main Library - Children's Department, 04/04/2026, 10:30am
- Free International Call for Art 6x6 - Rochester Contemporary Art Center (RoCo), 137 East Ave, Rochester, NY 14604, 04/04/2026, 12pm- 5pm Wednesday through Sunday, and 12pm-9pm on Fridays
- CHRS Presents Retro Roadshow- Playing with the Future -
California Historical Radio Society - Central Avenue, Alameda, CA, 04/04/2026, 1 pm to 4 pm
- *FREE* Dinosaur Eggscavation: Eggster's Egg Hunt and Learning Festival - Sather Tower, Berkeley, CA, 04/04/2026, 10:00AM - 3:00 PM
- Easterfest Brave Church - Brave Church San Ramon - 20801 San Ramon Valley Blvd, San Ramon, CA 94583, 04/05/2026 to 04/06/2026, 9am - 12pm PDT
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The KidsOutAndAbout annual guide to summer camps in the San Francisco area is back! You can search by date, age, or categories like day/overnight, sports, drama, music, theatre, arts & crafts, technology, robotics, horseback riding, preschool, &
more. Our guide puts summer fun right at your fingertips!
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Parents have an abundance of choices when it comes to PreK and day care options in the San Francisco area! Use our Big List to help find the best one for your kiddos and check our events calendar to find Open Houses where you can meet teachers and tour the
schools.
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Looking for a thrilling family-friendly adventure in the San Francisco? Escape rooms are interactive, puzzle-packed experiences where you and your team work together to solve clues and complete your mission-all before time runs out! Whether you're escaping
a spooky cabin, cracking a high-stakes heist, or breaking a magical curse, escape rooms offer exciting, screen-free fun for kids, teens, and adults.
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There are lots of places to have a birthday party in the San Francisco area! Start thinking outside the box! KidsOutAndAbout has dozens (and dozens) of ideas! In addition to venues in San Francisco, there are places in Oakland, Alameda, Pacifica, San
Leandro, Walnut Creek, Hayward, Dublin, and San…
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2025's best places to take kids in the San Francisco Bay area. Early each summer, thousands of parents vote in the KidsOutAndAbout survey of the Top 20 Places to Take Kids. Our Top 20 results page is an annotated list of the winners, both of the top 20
slots and of the three category winners: Who won for Top Arts Educator, Top Sports Educator, and Top STEM Educator?
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Have a great weekend!
Debra Ross
Publisher, KidsOutAndAbout.com
Mom of Madison and Ella |
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