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It would be an injustice not to pass along cheap family deals we stumble across to Cribsheeters.
(And this isn’t just cheap it’s FREE!)
Just saw this on StarTribune.com’s new Steals+Deals page.
Free rides at ComoTown for one week!
Read dates and time details here.

I haven’t brought the kids to Como Town yet - we need to check it out.
Have you been? What are your kids favorite rides?

btw: if you are pinching pennies (like me) and want to get alerts on more great deals you can fan Steals + Deals on Facebook or sign up for the weekly e-mail newsletter here.

Richardson Nature Center is tucked away off Bush Lake Rd in Bloomington in Hyland Park Reserve
(just north of the mega kid-mecca playground known as “Chutes and Ladders” - pictured at right)

I had learned about the Richardson Nature Center when I attended the “Raptor Release” a few weeks ago, and now it is our favorite place to go. The building is beautiful and there are lots of things to do on a cold or rainy day. Ben loves playing “match-match/same-same” on the 3-D murals that cover the walls. Kids pull out laminated cards out of bucket picturing a woodland creature and search around to find it.

There’s also a puppet theater and aquariums full of snakes, turtles and salamanders. Go upstairs and you can see a red-tail hawk, or a barred owl. Keep walking and you’ll come to a bird feeder viewing area with floor to ceiling windows. You can sit in a row of wooden rocking chairs and listen to the waterfall outside while you watch wild turkeys strut their stuff.

But when it’s nice out (like this past weekend of weather perfection) you can go see them in their natural habitat. There are miles of trails for exploring. We came across a dock and the lake surface was punctuated with turtle-heads, frogs, polliwogs and waterbugs skating around. The kids were enthralled.

It’s just so great to find a forest haven that makes you feel like you are no longer in the city (even though you are just south of the hustle bustle of HWY 494).

There are so many lakes and trails in the area - Cribsheeters where do you escape to get back to nature?

It’s finally Memorial Day Weekend (hooray!) hopefully a lovely LONG one for all of you.

Just wanted to share a fun (and all too true) read from James Lileks column today on our fleeting Minnesota summers. You can read it here.

And also wanted to let you know about StarTribune.com’s new interactive map to help you plan your street-fair-fireworks-free concerts-outdoor summer activities. Click on the “Summer of Fun” map here.

Personally - I’m looking for good kid-friendly grilling inspiration. We’ve got the requisite watermelon and corn on the cob - but what should our marinated or sear-marked main course be? Suggestions welcome!

Enjoy the weekend Cribsheeters! - Feel free to share your weekend plans below

May and I were honored to hear the news that Cribsheet was nominated for best local blog in the 2009 Nick’s Parents Connect Contest. We are in good company amongst some online friends. A few other nominees are bloggers we happen to have on our “blog-stroll” and who’s names you may recognize from guest posts or comments here on Cribsheet (Yes, I’m talking about you - Sheletta, Missy and Suzi!) And some other blogs that I wasn’t familiar with but will check out.

Sorry, we don’t have an “I Voted” sticker for you but - you can vote once a day, each and every day, from now until July 15.

You can go and vote here:
2009 Nick’s Parents Connect Parents’ Picks Contest - Best Local Blog!

If you haven’t checked it out - Parents Connect/GoCityKids is a resource to find out what family friendly events are going on in the Twin Cities area.

Ours will be low key - but fun. My husband is taking Sunday off work - we rarely get to spend a weekend day together as a family so that is a treat in itself.
My Mother’s Day goal is to hit a farmer’s market or two to gather shade loving pretties and plant our window boxes with the kids.

Mill City Farmers Market has some Mother’s Day goings on tomorrow. More here - Mill City Farmers Market.

If you want to spend your day on Birdwell Island…just saw and ad - Mother’s get free admission to the Childrens Museum in St. Paul on Sunday. (Yes, Clifford the Big Red Dog is still there.)

For more ideas - check gocitykids calendar

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And for your reading enjoyment….

Just wanted to alert you to two features to look for in this weekend’s Star Tribune

In Saturday’s Variety Kim Ode shares the results of the reader’s query for Mother’s Memory Box put out a few weeks back - what kind of quirky and sentimental keepsakes do mom’s keep from childhood?

And Sunday’s must read (hopefully while Mother is enjoying breakfast in bed) is Gail Rosenblum’s profile of an amazing local mom and her charming kids.
Look for her story on the front page on Mother’s Day.

What are your plans for Mother’s Day?