Fun with Crayons at Crayola

We enjoyed a lovely day at the Crayola Experience and were thrilled to finally get to see all of the new attractions that have been added since the attraction was made over last year. We were able to spend about 3 hours at the Experience and could have stayed another few hours easily if naps hadn't been calling my kids' names (they were asleep before we hit 22!).

                                        

This post is the first of (hopefully) many more that will introduce a special savings offer to our readers!  Keep reading and make sure to click the link at the bottom for a huge limited time discount on admission to the Crayola Experience!

                                                 
Their new attraction allowing children to make art out of melted crayons was great! They were able to paint with wax, mold their own crayon into a special shape and make spin art!

                                                 


The crayon molding station was really fun. We got to choose our color and mold a crayon into our choice of shapes! - We picked a fancy ring! These exhibits despite involving heat are 100% safe, as the machinery all has cooling equipment that makes sure everything is safe to touch before it comes out.
 
                                  

                                  
                                 
The Art Alive room was really cool! This is a new addition since last year's remodel and it allows kids to draw, animate and use multiple different artistic techniques on an ipad to project a creation onto a huge wall dancing with children's artwork! Older kids could get really creative with all of the options that the application offers.


                                               

                                               

They have a new attraction that lets your make a crayon with your name on it! You get to pick a symbol/picture and put your name in and a real crayon label gets printed for you to put onto the crayon!

                                                    

                                          

The Toddler Town space is a much appreciated addition that expands the age rage that the Crayola Experience can reach.  We loved the giant light up peg board!

Photo courtesy of Crayola

                                      
Their new multiple level playground was intimidating for our 4 year old. She was interested but never fully "took the plunge" she couldn't seem to muster the guts to climb into the 3 story climbing apparatus. This is a great way to burn energy after taking in some of the exhibits and is probably best for ages 5+ ( or brave 4 year olds)!

                          

We spent a long time in the Doodle in the Dark room. My kids loved chasing the animations on the floor and making the giant animated crayons move and dance with them and the glow coloring wall was really fun as well, with boards that were just their height it made it easy for them to draw on the walls.







                                               

Baby Chickadee #1 and Baby Chickadee #2 highly recommend the giant bubble crayons as an excellent place for taking a break!

Families can save over 20% on admission to the Crayola Experience this summer by clicking here or below on the photo. This offer will close shortly don't miss out! Tickets can be used anytime if you purchase now. These also make a great gift!  

If you are interested in offering a special deal for your Lehigh Valley attraction, business or event and/or would like to be featured in our blog please contact us directly by submitting a form here.

All photos are Copyright of Lehigh Valley Find and Go Seek , No photos should be copied from this blog for any other use, without the written permission of the Blog owner.

Lehigh Valley Summer Camp Guide

Make Your Kids' Summer Rock!

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Summer 2014 is coming!

We are just on the cusp of breaking through this winter's DEEP freeze andsummer is on its way (we promise!).  Have you given any thought to how you are going to keep those busy minds and active bodies occupied when schools let out? We've made our favorite picks for summer camps and are sharing them with you!

Visit our camps page for a full list but first look at some of these awesome programs local businesses are offering!

 

 

 Color Me Mine "Adventures in Art"

No sunscreen required! If dirt and grime are not your child's cup of tea Color Me Mine has 8 full weeks of AWESOME themed art camps for children (6 and up).  Their camps feature weekly themes see their full list of themes here.

Children can stay a full day or or for just the morning or afternoon, the the unique flexibility of these workshops means you can really pick and choose the sessions you child wants to participate in and easily have them participate in specific weeks that interest them.

Register for 3 or more weeks are recieve 10% off! 

Some featured themes include!

• Fairy Tales
• Works inspired by famous artists
• Bookworms - literary inspired art
• Time travel - art through time
• Sports
• See More here!

Summer Workshop Open Houses

Sunday, March 16, 10 AM - 11 AM
Sunday, April 13, 10 AM - 11 AM
Sunday, May 18, 10 AM - 11 AM
Sunday, June 8, 10 AM - 11 AM

Stop in during one of these times to learn more about their newly re-vamped programs or call (610) 791-2228 to register!

 

 Wildlands Conservancy

The Wildlands Conservancy offers the BEST outdoor camp programs for kids. New this year is Fairy Camp, Lizards & Wizards and Biomimicry (grades 6+). Plus, their highly  sought-after Water Camps, more Nature & Art and Child Vs. Wild!

Children as young as 2 years old can sign up for programs with Wildlands! Programs are perfect for kids even through their teens.

Their friendly and well-trained staff is second to none, has child abuse clearances and is certified in First Aid, CPR and AED.

Where else can you go tubing in the Little Lehigh Creek??!? This feature is for certain a Wildlands exclusive!  

Wildlands also offers live educational animals – from their beloved skunk Smudge to birds of prey, plus 77.5 acres of open space for investigating.Every week is different, structured for experiential learning and geared for FUN! Plus they offer extended camp hours that are great for working parents, which means parents won't likely need additional child care before or after camp hours.

Save 10% when you register before May 3! Click here to register now!

Insider tips! The Wildlands Conservancy offers campers to immerse themslves in nature by spending their entire day outdoors!  Campers in grades 6+ participate in a full-day Lehigh River biking and canoeing trip on select weeks!

Upcoming Events:

• Where the Wild Eggs Are! , Saturday, April 12 from 1-4 p.m. Fee: $10. Chance to “Crack Open” a free week of summer camp and on-site registration.
   
• Earth Day Festival, Saturday, April 26 from noon to 3 p.m Free program. Summer camp registration on site.

• Summer Camp Open House, Saturday, May 3 from 1-4p.m. Free program. Summer camp registration on site.

Visit www.wildlandspa.org to learn more and register for these events!

School of Rock Camps Rock!

School of Rock is hosting 3 awesome rockin' musical camps for kids this summer. 

• A 5 day Rock & Roll Boot Camp (6/23-6/27)
• A 3 day Rock Vox Vocal Camp (6/30-7/2)
• A 5 day Beatles Performance Camp (7/14-7/18)

The School of Rock is a great music and social community for kids, where they can learn music is a safe and fun environment from some of the best musicians in the area. Children ages 9 and up are invited to register for these unique performance camps.

School of Rock is at it's core a performance-based music program.  Kids immediately walk into this School with something in common; a love of music and a desire to play with others.  Their music staff is background checked annually and work for themthroughout the year - they don't hire seasonal employees to staff our camps, so the instructors are people they are familiar with and trust, so you can feel comfortable leaving them with them for the day.

Their Easton facility is fully equipped for rockin'.  Guitarists and bassists should bring their instruments, drummers should bring sticks, but they have pretty much everything else ready!  If students want to, they can sign up for a couple of refresher lessons the week before the camp, so they are ready to go.

Call now to schedule a tour!  You can reach them at (610) 923-7624

Register online, spaces are filling quickly!

Girl Scouts of Eastern PA Summer Camps

Geocaching, Spa camp, Drama camp... these aren't your mother's girls scout camps! The Girl Scouts of Eastern PA are proud to be offering a full menu of camps to fit every girl's unique interests and talents.

GSEP Overnight Camp programs

• Camp Mosey Wood: Camp Mosey Wood is located in the Pocono Mountains on 425 acres and features a beautiful lake. In addition to their chosen theme, all girls experience traditional camp activities including swimming and boating on a daily basis (weather permitting).  Other activities include arts and crafts, cookouts, campfires, hikes, nature, science, singing, archery, climbing wall, teambuilding activities, and wishing candles. See details on their website about family camp too! For more details on programs and special interest camps click here.
• Camp Laughing Waters: Enjoy 460 acres of rolling meadows, wide open spaces, a large swimming pool with lights, an athletic field, hiking trails, archery (4th grade and above) and horseback riding. In addition to their chosen program theme, all campers will participate in traditional camp activities (weather permitting) which may include swimming, arts and crafts, cookouts, campfires, hikes, nature activities, singing, and games. View their full brochure of dates, times and activities here.
• Camp Wood Haven: Located in Schuykill County, Camp Wood Haven has 200 beautiful acres of forests, meadows, and protected wetlands. Choose from a great selection of leadership, horse, animal, and trip programs with fun themes to make this your best summer ever. All girls enjoy swimming and age-appropriate activities like archery, low ropes, climbing wall, teambuilding, arts and crafts, journey activities, and more. Girls in grades 6-12 design their own activities in the "Choose Your Own Adventure" program.  Campers may live in a tent, Adirondack shelter, or a treehouse!. View their full brochure of dates, times and activities here.

GSEP Day Camps

• Camp Mountain House: Mountain House is a wooded sanctuary located in Lehigh County minutes away from Allentown. This popular day camp has two large cabins, a picnic pavilion, a nature trail and new this year, an outdoor stage for performances. In addition to their chosen theme week, all girls experience arts and crafts, archery (4th grade and above), teambuilding activities and daily swimming offsite. Extended care options are avilable for working parents View their full list of special interest camps and programs here.

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Really Sili

This post is long over due and while it isn't local (which I tend to avoid) I love this product and want to share it!

These adorable little products are the best solution to making messy foods like yogurt and applesauce neat and transportable! They're called Sili Squeezes

Our three year old never seems to finish her yogurt on the way out of the house each morning so putting the leftovers in here to finish as we are in the car is perfect! Here is a quick depiction of our youngest trying hers out.  It took her a little while longer to get used to the idea because to her it looked like a bottle (which she never liked) but once she realized it was food and that she could do it herself she loved it!

I have always detested the cost and wastefulness of the little reusable food pouches you can buy for toddlers and preschoolers and this was the perfect solution.  The Sili Squeeze is easy to clean, compact and comes in a few different sizes.  They aer available online in their Sili Store or at Amazon here.

They have different spouts depending on the age of your child which makes it easy to make sure they will be able to get the food out without making a mess!

CHILLY family photos

A few months back I attended a fundraiser at Sydney's Salon in Coopersburg to benefit a young family that was battling cancer.  Photographer Jeff Sabotta of Sabotta Imagery was so generous to donate 3 photo sessions for the raffle at the event and I was lucky enough to WIN!  Sabotta Imagery is a Lehigh Valley Family and wedding photographer that specializes in candid lifestyle photography.

I was thrilled to hear about winning the session and set out right away to schedule an appointment. We scrambled to schedule before the holidays so we could put together a Christmas card to mail out.  Weather and scheduling conflicts pushed our session back to late November making for a chilly photo shoot! Despite the frigid conditions, wind and uncooperative children Jeff was amazing, patient and creative with the few smiles our kids were willing to give.

We jumped in and out of the car warming up between shots for the better part of 2 hours working hard to keep everyone warm and (relatively) happy.  Jeff was easy to talk to and we came to realized we had a good bit in common (a love for Vermont, hockey and some mutual friends!). He engaged our children making things fun and entertaining for them (as much as possible considering the cold). 

I was impressed by Jeff's interest in hearing about what we wanted for our photos and willingness to talk with me at length prior to our session.  He truly understood my desire for candid shots that captured our children's personalities and our family dynamic as it exists now.  Jeff's photography style aligned very much with my preferences for photos as I have never gotten much pleasure out of studio style photographs and always enjoyed the "imperfect" nature of candid, lifestyle photos.

Please enjoy this little peek at our session...

 

 Her only smile of the morning.

 Very reminiscence of our wedding photos

 

Yep. She's got spunk.

I was so impressed by Jeff's ability to capture our children's personalities, out little one loves to snuggle and is always close to momma, our older one is spunky, energetic, always moving, running or jumping.  Their different personalities are well captured in our photos and because of this we will forever be able to look back and recall these young years.

We were able to snag a few quick shots of our extended family before closing up the session. These are a few of our favorites.

We are so satisfied with our session and we definitely be seeing Jeff again in the future for more photos to capture our growing family. Thanks for looking, if you are interested in booking Jeff for your family photos don't hesitate to e-mail him at Sabottaimagery@gmail.com. We are beyond thrilled with our session and look forward to scheduling with him again this spring! Thank you Jeff!

Follow Sabotta Imagery on Facebook  or visit Jeff's website for more samples of his Lehigh Valley Family Photography.

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Precious Cargo

What could be more important than ensuring that your children are as safe as possible when driving around town?

I have followed Super Car Sear Geek on Facebook for a while watching for tips, deals on car seats and interesting facts about car seat safety.  It became clear very quickly that Abbie (aka Super Car Sear Geek) knows her stuff and is truly passionate about what she does. Her Lehigh Valley Car Seat service offers FREE car seat checks to parents and caregivers in the region and has invaluable advice for families through her courses, checks and other available services. Recently partnering up with fellow CPST Erica McCabe the service has now expanded to provide car seat checks in the Pocono region also!

Personally, I thought I knew everything I needed to know (I bet you do too).  Abbie can teach even a seasoned parent some new tricks for keeping safe while driving ( I promise!).  Attending a class and scheduling a car seat check probably are not high on your to do list, they weren't high on mine either.  Keep reading and see why you might want to re-evaluate that to-do list, it will be worth your while!  I cannot say enough how much this class and car seat check boosted my confidence in my ability to secure my children in our vehicles.  It say sound "geeky" but the first time I drove with them in the back seat I thought to my self "I KNOW they are as safe as they can be" and I actually felt better and safer while driving them around.

Car Seat Class

I recently attended her "Crash Course: Car Seat Safety for Caregivers" at The Growing Place in Emmaus. Abbie presented her course in an interactive, engaging way, by asking questions quizzing us on our past knowledge and by letting us be the inspectors of the seats shown above.  She used videos that showed the severe impact that children endure during crashes.  These videos showed in real time how improperly restrained children sustain impact during a crash.

One of the most important items discussed which is extremely relevant during the cold winter months, is the fact that children are NOT to wear bulky winter coats while restrained in a car seat or boosters!  Abbie had creative suggestions for how to keep kids warm and safe during the chilly winter months.  This class is highly recommended to parents-to-be, current parents, child care providers, and grandparents and would make a great gift!

The Growing Place

I attended my course at The Growing Place in Emmaus. This local business offers a variety of services to parents, parents-to-be and caregivers.  Pre-natal massage, breastfeeding classes, birthing classes, doula services, car seat safety, baby sign language and more! This unique center hosts a variety of services that support families and mothers/mothers to be.  They also host a free mom's group for mothers and their children the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month.  Their home-like setting is comfortable and welcoming and is tucked just off of Main St. in Emmaus making it quite convenient. Stop in to see their location and meet their friendly staff or drop in to their mom's group and meet some new friends and playmates.

 Checking the Seats

Abbie and I met to check our current seats for proper installation and fit.  Her evaluation was so thorough, I was very impressed. She checked each child's weight and height and evaluated how they were sitting in their current seats.  She determined our older child was near to growing out of her seat, which hadn't occurred to me yet!  There are factors that go into determining a fit that Abbie knew and I did not. Her check was much more comprehensive than the check we received from the local police station and The Personalized Quick Reference Guide seat she left us with is a great reference tool to follow along with and monitor for when our children are ready for another switch.

Car Seat Concierge 

When purchasing car seats for our children the first 2 times we focused mainly on price, height and weight, looking for something that seemed to last a while and would meet our child's needs.  If you ever been to the car seat section at Buy Buy Baby or Babies R Us, you understand the veritable jungle that one encounters when shopping for a car seat, its a nightmare, how could you possibly pick the perfect seat at the best price to last a long as possible?!?! Abbie helps with this too, her car seat concierge service evaluates every variable that goes in to picking a seat and guides you to choose the best seat for your budget, child and car.

• vehicle make/model
• multiple vehicle usage
• child's height/weight/age
• rear facing or forward facing variables 
• price point/affordability

 Her extensive experience with different seats, vehicles models and safety regulations will guide you in your purchase.  This service was AMAZING! She guided us in our purchase, helped find a great deal on the seat we needed after noticing that we were about to outgrow the current seat being used. She evaluated our needs for a seat and  made recommendations based our our children's specific needs.  I would never have been able to navigate the 1,000's of available seats with such ease had it not been for Abbie's advice. Our daughter was so excited by her new seat when it arrived, we regretted not wrapping it up for Christmas!

I highly recommend this service to anyone who is looking for a new seat for their child, it is 100% worth the cost, especially in that Abbie certainly knows where to find a great deal on seats, so your cost could easily be cancelled out by the savings you get on a great deal.

 

Contact
Interested in scheduling a free car set check? You can contact Abbie by phone or e-mail or through her facebook page. Like her page on facebook to follow along for great tips and tricks!

Abbie Patterson
https://www.facebook.com/SuperCarSeatGeek
(484) 544-3664
abbieCPST@gmail.com

Want to find a class to attend?
The next available car sear course is January 18 at Ju-Ju Monkey register here
March 2 The Growing Place will also be hosting a class! Contact Abbie to register. 

What people are saying ... See reviews and raves about Abbie's services here

 

Thanks for visiting and please be sure to stop by http://lehighvalley.findandgoseek.net for more Lehigh Valley family resources, activities and fun for kids!

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