Stop by the Natural History Museum for some fossil fun!
Happy Weekend!
Quick links to KFDC go-to posts:
* The Great Indoors
* Swim Spots
* Off-the-Beaten-Path Museums
* Best Outdoors in the DC Area
* Local Hikes with Kids
* Baltimore with Kids
* Bike Rides
* Paddling Options
* Stunning Spaces
* Peaceful Places
Destination Domino
Where: National Building Museum | Judiciary Square, DC
When: Through July 20
Admission: See website
It’s a domino effect at the Building Museum as Domino Artist Lily Hevesh is artist-in-residence for the next week and a half. Visitors will have the unique opportunity to witness the construction process of her monumental domino creations and are invited to try their hand at building their own small topple, experimenting with friction and kinetic energy, and designing their own domino chain reactio. Additionally, the award-winning feature length documentary about her journey, Lily Topples the World, will screen daily in the Museum’s auditorium at 11am and 2pm.
Romanian Weekend
Where: The Wharf | Southwest DC
When: Friday, 5-9pm, Saturday, 12-8pm & Sunday, 12-7pm
Admission: Free
Join the Embassy of Romania and the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York for a a three-day extravaganza on District Pier celebrating the richness and diversity of Romanian culture with music, dance, food, wine, spoken word performances, concerts, and craft shows!
Explore the Earth’s Past
Where: Natural History Museum | National Mall, DC
When: Saturday, 10am – 12:30pm
Admission: Free
This session of the museum’s The World and Me program explores Deep Time. Experience the Hall of Fossils throigh a variety of activities: Touch and hold real fossils. observe experts at work in the FossiLab, engage with educators and experts throughout the exhibit at different carts and stations, create your own fossil rubbing, find fossils throughout the museum with a special fossil map, decorate your own pendant to take home, and more. Join at any time during the duration of the event and stay as long as suits each family.
Hill Family Biking: Lotus T(w)een Ride
Where: Capitol Hill to Kenilworth Aquatic Garden | Northeast DC
When: Saturday, 10:30am – 1pm
Admission: Free
Hill Family Biking is hosting its first ever teen ride (rising 6th graders and up, no parents!) to the Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens to see the lotus flowers. They’ll start at the triangle park on the 1300 block of North Carolina Ave and bike 5 miles up protected bike lanes and the Anacostia River Trail to Kenilworth, hang out and take photos and then ride back as a group. Space is limited, so register now!
Museums Beyond DC
Where: Museums in MD & VA
When: Ongoing
Admission: Varies by place
DC is well known for its legion of museums, but there are even more beyond the District lines that are great to explore with kids — and a mix of a rainy and hot weekend is a good time to check them out. See this post for a round-up of museums to explore in Maryland and Northern Virginia.
Battle of Fort Stevens Anniversary
Where: Fort Stevens Park | Northwest DC
When: Saturday, 10am – 4pm
Admission: Free
Join Rock Creek Park for the commemoration of the 160th anniversary of the Battle of Fort Stevens and to explore the Civil War history of DC. Learn about the Civil War era — the history, the music, the people, and even children’s games — through talks, demonstrations, music, and more. FEstivities include a children’s activity tent, an Abraham Lincoln reenactor, authors’ table, a Civil War medicine demonstration, and more.
Waterpower Day
Where: Peirce Mill | Rock Creek Park, DC
When: Saturday, 10am – 2pm
Admission: Free
See how Peirce Mill uses the power of water to grind corn into cornmeal. Then experiment with water toys, learn about Archimedean screws, and construct a paper-plate waterwheel. DC Water will provide plenty of fresh, cold drinking water and a river clean-up activity for kids. Enjoy free summer fun for all ages in Rock Creek Park!
HBD, Alexandria!
Where: Oronoco Bay Park | Alexandria, VA
When: Saturday, 6-9:45pm
Admission: Free
The City of Alexandria will celebrate its 275th (and the USA’s 248th) birthday on Saturday, with festivities for all ages — art activities, cupcakes, poetry, vendors to shop, and performances by Three Man Soul Machine and the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra ending with a Grand Finale fireworks display at 9:30pm.
Bubble Days
Where: Maryland Science Center | Baltimore, MD
When: Saturday & Sunday, 12-4pm
Admission: $26.95/adult, $20.95/child
Join the best bubble party of the summer at Maryland Science Center’s annual event! Create your own bubble solution and test your bubble making skills to make giant bubbles, double bubbles, fizzy foamies, and more! See the world-renowned bubble artist Casey Carle in his suds-tacular show, Bubblemania! Get ready for two days that will be bursting with fun. Of course, explore the rest of the MSC while you’re there — it’s awesome! Read more about it here and here.
Show Time
Where: Around the DC area
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Varies by show
There’s all kinds of entertainment on local stages this weekend. Here’s what and where you can catch it (and you can find show details and any discount links here):
* Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale at Adventure Theatre
* Children’s Theatre-in-the-Woods at Wolf Trap
* Miss Nelson is Missing at Imagination Stage
* The Wizard of Oz at the The Puppet Co.
* Young Frankenstein by the The Talent Machine Companyin Annapolis
* Funny Girl at the Kennedy Center
Art Cart: Build a Butterfly
Where: Hirshhorn Museum |National Mall, DC
When: Saturday, 10am – 1pm
Admission: Free
Drop in at the modern art museum for hands-on artsy fun. This Saturday, explore nature’s beauty inspired by artist Jessica Diamond and her work Butterfly Incantation (Polygonia Comma, Polygonia Interrogationis, Plebejus Melissa Samuelis). Look closely at her work on view and create your own nature-inspired art. Find the Art Cart on the Second Level and pick up your colorful materials.
DC United vs Nashville
Where: Audi Field | Southwest DC
When: Saturday, 7:30pm
Admission: Ticket prices vary
DC United is playing at home on Saturday evening, hosting Nashville. As always, I recommend taking public transportation or parking in the Navy Yard neighborhood and walking to Audi Field from there. Plan for a pre-match bite — here are a bunch of recs for family-friendly spots to eat there.
Seize the Season
Where: Around the DC Area
When: All weekend
Admission: Varies by locale
Summer is whizzing by, so enjoy the season while you can with activities that only occur this time of year. Some ideas: Start off the weekend with a free outdoor concert and water play at Yards Park, then continue the fun on Saturday and Sunday (and cool off) at a pool or spray park. Or enjoy a special exhibit like Fairies in the Garden at Annmarie Sculpture Garden. Wind it all up with crab feast on Sunday. Get details about all of these summer diversions and even more in the 2024 Summer Guide.
High Wheelin’
Where: Downtown Frederick, MD
When: Saturday, 12-3pm
Admission: Free
Penny farthing, anyone? Get a curbside seat to America’s only high wheel race in historic downtown Frederick, MD. The National Clustered Spires High Wheel Race is a unique event that celebrates the history of bikes. Watch the fun along the .4 mile route and plan to enjoy more time in the Frederick — the downtown area is great to stroll, eat, and shop!
Model Trains Open House
Where: Historic Vienna Train Station | Vienna, VA
When: Saturday, 2-7pm
Admission: Free (donations accepted)
Chug on down to the Historic Vienna Train Station for their first Open House since the pandemic began. See and hear HO scale model trolleys and trains, including Thomas and some of his friends on display and in operation. It’s a great family fun and activity for the young and young at heart. The Station is at 231 Dominion Road NE, Vienna, VA along the W&OD trail just past the Caboose.
Pop-Up Book Fair
Where: Folger Shakespeare Library | Capitol Hill, DC
When: Sunday,
Admission: Free
Join the recently reopened Folger for their second Book Fair, which includes books shopping and family activities. Bring kiddos to a special story time with Ello, a children’s reading app for kindergarten to 3rd grade, from 11:15-11:45am. Then shop a curated book selection inspired by Folger Theatre, Poetry, and Book Club programs and learnmore about them. Poetry readins, prize drawing, and, of course, the Folger’s exhibits will also be part of the day’s activities. Read more about the Folger here.
Futbol Finals
Where: Various locations around DC
When: Sunday, 3pm & 8pm
Admission: Cost of your meal/drinks
Both the Euro Cup and Copa America finals are on Sunday — and both are sure to be exiting matches. If you want to watch with other local futbol fans, head to a place around the area that’s known as a go-to for watching soccer. Eater DC shared a round-up of where to watch last month at the start of the tournaments, and those places are sure to be showing the finals, too.
On the Fringe
Where: Theaters around DC
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Varies by performances
The Capital Fringe Festival is underway, and while most of the entertainment lineup this weekend is recommended for tween ages and up, there are a few all ages events, too. More details and ticket sales are on the Capital Fringe Festival website. And, parents, consider catching a performance for a KidFree night out.
Little Critters Nature Play
Where: National Zoo | Woodley Park, DC
When: Saturday & Sunday, 9:30am – 1pm
Admission: Free
Drop in with little ones for hands-on activities and story time at the Zoo! Have a wild time exploring animals and the natural world through creative, free-choice activity stations in a brand-new indoor/outdoor classroom. Dig for horseshoe crabs in the sand table, make lunch for a bird in the mud kitchens, or just join for a story or two. Read Aloud Storytimes take place at 10am 11am, and 12pm. The play area is designed for ages 0-5 and their caregivers and families, but all ages are welcome. (PS: The Zoo is fun for older kids, too… read more about it in this KFDC post.)
Inside Action
Where: Around the DC area
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Varies by place
With both rain and heat in the forecast, find places inside that offer some active fun. From pickleball and roller skating to tennis and ping pong to escape rooms and scavenger hunts to an indoor waterpark, this post shares all kinds of ways to get your fun and game on.
***MORE GOOD STUFF***
* As you’re looking for indoor places to hang out around DC, why not make it a stunning one?
* Plan for a unique family experience: Watson Adventures has a Wizard School Scavenger Hunt at the National Gallery of Art coming up on August 10. Read all about the super fun adventure here.
* Charming weekend getaways from DC.
* Perfect meal/drink to make on a hot summer day.
* Here’s something to elevate summer fun — and a good deal right now.
* What a stunning dress.
* Nordstrom’s BIG anniversary sale is open now to Nordstrom cardmembers (July 15 for non-members).
* Just downloaded a sample of this new book by Taffy Brodesser-Akner, author of the fantastic Fleishman is in Trouble.
* How cool would it be to happen upon one of these troll sculptures?
* Weather report 😅
