The Bluebird Patch

Feature exhibit encouraging children to explore and express emotions closes September 5 School is back in session, which means feelings are front and center for the start of a new year! While kids adjust to the hustle and bustle of fresh beginnings, now is the perfect time for families to head to Children’s Museum of Atlanta’s exploratory exhibition XOXO: An Exhibit About Love & Forgiveness before it closes on Monday, September 5!  Offering an introspective look at the power of emotion and its impact, children will explore these feelings through 14 different engaging experiences including a response wall, story puzzle, empathy blocks, a reflection table, art making stations and more! Each of these brightly colored spaces is designed to help children understand, appreciate and express how they feel in an interactive, hands-on environment!

New puppet production based on award-winning children’s book ATLANTA  – Get ready for a brand-new barnyard tale like you’ve never “herd” before! Featuring Farmer Brown and his clever, comical cows, Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type grazes the Center for Puppetry Arts stage with its debut June 9-July 26 . Directed by the Center’s artistic director Jon Ludwig, this bovine bunch illustrates what happens when cows learn to type and chickens go on strike! Supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type is adapted from the award-winning children’s book for the puppet stage by Ludwig and resident puppet builder Jason Hines. This fun farm tale features rod marionettes and rod puppets performed by veteran puppeteers Brian Harrison, Mandy Mitchell, Amy Sweeney, and Tim Sweeney, with narration and original musical accompaniment by Dolph Amick. All of the puppets, props and scenery were created onsite by the Center’s talented artists.

The DeKalb Choral Guild, in partnership with the Jim Cherry Memorial Planetarium, presents a choral concert inside the Fernbank Planetarium on Friday, May 8th, 2015, at 8:00 pm. “Sure Stars Shining” is a concert of songs about the night sky presented under the night sky. Stars will twinkle and dance on Fernbank’s dome, and other images of the universe will appear and recede, while the guild sings songs highlighting this stellar theme. Of particular note on the program is Eriks Esenvald’s “Stars,” which uses wine glasses as accompaniment. Other works include David Dickau’s “Stars I Shall Find,” Randall Thompson’s “Choose Something Like a Star,” and Imant Raminsh’s “In the Night We Shall Go In.” The evening’s highlight will be a song composed specifically for this chorus and concert by N. Grant Pfeifer. This work, titled “The Voiceless Silence,” is a setting of poetry by Ella Wheeler Wilcox. Pfeifer’s “A Star,” which sets poetry by Grace Noll Crowell to music, is also on the ...

Come Celebrate 45 Years of  Sesame Street ATLANTA, January 20, 2015 – Fernbank Museum of Natural History ( fernbankmuseum.org ) is excited to be partnering with Georgia Public Broadcasting to celebrate 45 Years of  Sesame Street  with a  Sesame Street Celebration  on January 24 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Fernbank’s  Great Hall  will host photo opportunities with the famous  Sesame Street  Brownstone and an appearance from Cookie Monster. The event will also include a game station, a  macaroni-saurus  craft, temporary tattoos and more. Guests are encouraged to dress up in their favorite  Sesame Street  costumes or clothing and are invited to participate in a costume contest that will take place at noon. Various local children’s authors will do live readings of their stories in the Naturalist Center on Fernbank’s upper level throughout the event day. After hearing a fun story, guests are invited to the a...

A Swashbuckling Family Fun Day ATLANTA, January 6, 2015 – By popular demand, Fernbank will offer another Pirate Day  on  Saturday, January 10 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.  The event will feature various pirate-themed activities, which are perfect for families to enjoy together.  Pirate Day  activities include a special craft using recycled newsprint, temporary pirate tattoos, a Pirate Name Generator and a variety of games, including “Walk the Plank.” Guests will also have an opportunity to participate in a special Museum scavenger hunt, providing a fun opportunity to explore the Museum’s permanent exhibitions. The highlight of this popular event will be appearances by members of the Atlanta Pirates and Wenches Guild, dressed in authentic pirate gear.

ATLANTA  – To celebrate women’s health and promote Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Mall of Georgia and Town Center at Cobb are hosting their third annual Paint the Mall Pink from October 2-5 . The community events are set to be filled with fun and informational activities, prize giveaways, entertainment and more – all while benefitting breast cancer research. WHAT: Paint the Mall Pink Support Breast Cancer Awareness month with special 5K races, fashion shows, live music and much more! WHERE: Mall of Georgia 3333 Buford Drive, Buford, Ga. 30519 3 rd Annual Girls Night Out Thursday, October 2 from 6 - 8 p.m. Nordstrom Court Calling all fashionistas!  Grab the gals and get in on all the mini makeovers, swag bag giveaways, fun prizes and more! Guests can also enjoy live entertainment from local favorite, The Woody’s Unplugged. For more information, please visit on.fb.me/1rwcu1j .

Yo Gabba Gabba Live! TV’s hippest kid’s show will stop at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta Wednesday, Dec. 3 at 6:30 p.m. The state-of-the-art live show production features music, singing, dancing and animation. DJ Lance Rock and the Yo Gabba Gabba creators Christian Jacobs and Scott Schultz carefully hand-picked the setlist to make the most awesome show yet. Fan favorite Leslie Hall will join the cast on stage along with hip-hop legend Biz Markie who will teach kids how to beat box with “Biz’s Beat of the Day.” Special guests are invited to join the party on stage in each city for the “Dancey Dance” and “Super Music Friends Show” segments. All new performances of show favorites including the veggie friendly “Party in My Tummy,” along with collaborations and medleys that will instantly remind us to jump and dance but “Don’t Bite Your Friends!” will be a fun family experience for all. Champions on the stage and in the community, the Gabba gang will participate in various ser...

One-of-a-kind Victorian street festival marks 35th anniversary  ATLANTA — On Sunday, Oct. 5, Atlanta’s “passed” and present will meet at historic Oakland Cemetery at Sunday In the Park. Celebrating 35 years as one of the city’s most unique fall festivals, Sunday In the Park features an afternoon full of music, art, food, dancing and more.  From noon to 6 p.m., Atlanta’s oldest cemetery will host thousands of locals and visitors, as well as food trucks from Palookaville, The Varsity, Six Feet Under, WOW!, Mighty Meatballs and Al A Carte Frozen Bananas.  More than 10 musical acts will perform throughout the day, alongside dancers, storytellers, and actors.  In keeping with historic Oakland Cemetery’s Victorian aesthetic, attendees are invited to get into the spirit of Sunday In the Park by dressing in period clothing. A Victorian costume contest will determine the best dressed in both traditional and steampunk categories.  The street festi...

Voted one of the top three arts & crafts shows in the nation by Sunshine Artist Magazine, a Southeast Tourism Society Top 20 Event and winner of multiple awards by the Southeast Festival and Events Association. Thursday, September 4:  10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Friday, September 5:  10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Saturday, September 6:  10 a.m. - 7:30 p.m. Sunday, September 7:  10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Despite its growth from a small arts & crafts show to the four day event that it has become today, the Yellow Daisy Festival Presented by Humana continues to be a big show with a small-town feel. The mission of re-connecting families and friends with fun, shopping, live entertainment and good food has remained constant over the past forty-five years. Multi-generations of mothers, daughters and grandmothers meander the wooded trails together in search of the perfect item. More than 400 artists and crafters from 38 States and two countries display their works for your appreciation ...

Join the Atlanta Track Club and members of its youth running program, Kilometer Kids , for a free fun run. The events are are is approximately one mile, and a fun way to get kids active and fit. The course includes a mixture of grass and trails. This event is open to all children ages 7-14. Registration is available online through 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, September 23, and event day registration is available at the event beginning at 4:15 pm. A waiver must be completed and signed prior to the event.  Online registration is available at atlantatrackclub.org , and there will also be onsite registration the day of the events. Here is the fall schedule:

Come Celebrate Dinosaurs At The South’s Best Natural History  Museum Fernbank Museum of Natural History has declared August  Dinosaur Month . Of course no Fernbank celebration is complete without events, crafts, throwbacks and some exciting ways to learn. Throughout the month, Fernbank will be posting throwback photos on social media channels honoring the many places visitors can encounter dinosaurs throughout the Museum. Fernbank will also offer dinosaur-themed editions of the popular story-time program,  Tadpole Tales , on August 16 and 17, and of the family-friendly  Weekend Wonders  program every Saturday and Sunday throughout the month.   On Saturday, August 23 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m., Fernbank will host its annual  Dinosaur Birthday Bash  to celebrate the anniversary of the Giants of the Mesozoic  exhibit. The exhibition was the first time the world saw the full skeletons of the world’s largest dinosau...

Timeless Characters Team Up to Tell a New Tale at Center for Puppetry Arts   Mother Goose is missing! Classic characters from everyone’s favorite nursery rhymes must band together to solve the crime in the  Center for Puppetry Arts’  inventive production of  Shake a Tale Feather with Mother Goose , August 21- September 21 . Humpty Dumpty, Little Bo Peep, Jack & Jill and all the other citizens of Rhymeville need help to look for clues and piece together the mystery of Mother Goose’s whereabouts. Filled with music and high levels of guest interaction, this show will have audience members tapping their toes, clapping their hands and singing with their little ones!             Adapted and directed by Amy Sweeney,  Shake a Tale Feather with Mother Goose  is a new production for  Theater for the Very Young , featuring performances b...

The Fresh Beat Band Greatest Hits Live Presented by Nickelodeon Will Feature New Songs Plus Fan Favorites; Tickets On Sale Starting Friday, August 8 ATLANTA, GA (August 7, 2014) – The Fresh Beat Band , Nickelodeon’s preschool music group and stars of the Emmy Award-winning TV series of the same name, are back on the road for a brand-new nationwide concert tour and perform at the Fox Theatre on Sunday, November 9 at 5 p.m. The show will feature Kiki, Marina, Twist and Shout performing the band’s greatest hits including “Bananas,” “Here We Go” and a remixed version of “Great Day,” plus new songs including the pop classic, “Walk Like An Egyptian.”  Tickets range from $30-$40 and are on sale this Friday, August 8 at www.FoxTheatre.org , by calling 855-285-8499, or at the Fox Theatre Ticket Office.

Three nights of curated short-form adult puppetry performances from across the country WHAT: The 2014 National Puppet Slam at Center for Puppetry Arts Experience the beauty, ingenuity and hilarity of short-form puppet theater in this showcase of slam acts from across the country. Nominated by their respective slams in the Puppet Slam Network and curated by the Center for Puppetry Arts, the nation’s best slam performances will be presented for three nights only! Recommended for ages 18+ ONLY, the National Puppet Slam is sponsored in part by Dragon Con and the Puppet Slam Network.  The lineup is as follows:  ·         “ The Joshua Show: Trick Yourself into Being Happy ” by Joshua Holden from New York.  Mr. Nicholas, the sock puppet, expresses his frustration with feeling grumpy and sad every day. Joshua, his soul mate, teaches him how to kick the blues by tricking himself into being happy.

The Atlanta History Center is ready to keep the summer-fun going! This month families are welcome to attend the Meet the Past Festival on Saturday, August 23, 2014 from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm. Attendees will experience the best of Atlanta History Center Meet the Past museum theatre offerings through interactions with characters that bring to life the stories of people from Atlanta and the surrounding areas. Throughout the campus first-person interpreters share about prominent figures from Atlanta’s past as well as common  individuals  through dialogues and interactive experiences – giving a new understanding of history. Guests will even have the opportunity to take part in historical simulations and learn dances from the mid-nineteenth century. 

Come one, come all to Fernbank Museum's Carnival Science Day Enjoy Circus Performers, Science Shows, Games And Much More! Fernbank Museum of Natural History (fernbankmuseum.org) announces Carnival Science Day on July 26 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. This new family day will embody the fun of a carnival, all while teaching guests a little bit about the science that inspires all of those fun games and tricks. Big Thinkers Science Exploration will be performing Air Up There at 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. This exciting show will feature a hovercraft and a cannon that will launch smoke ring cannons into the audience. This show will amaze guests and leave them more knowledgeable about the world around them. The Imperial OPA will bring along a stilt walker, a hoop dancer and a strolling musician. These talented characters are sure to amaze as they pose for pictures and perform tricks. Guests will also have the chance to create their own optical illusion. The Giggy Thaumatrope...

Splash Into Fernbank For A Puppet Show, Crafts, Games And More! Fernbank Museum of Natural History continues its summer-long celebration of fun, 97 Days of Play , with Fins & Flippers Day . On Saturday, June 28 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. patrons are invited to come soak up summer adventure inspired by the special exhibition Whales: Giants of the Deep (on view), and the new film Great White Shark , now showing in Fernbank’s IMAX® Theatre. I will be there live tweeting, and my teen daughter  is part of the museum teen program and she will be working that day so if you see her please say hi!  Also, "That Puppet Guy", Lee Bryan will be performing his popular one-man show, Circus Fanta- Sea .  Guests of all ages can see Captain Tater Tot, the Pirate Captain and Ringmaster, who loses all his circus cargo in a mighty storm at sea. 

Come Celebrate Summer Island Style With Games, Music, Crafts And More ATLANTA, April 22, 2014 – Fernbank Museum of Natural History will host Island Adventure Day, a fun-filled day appropriate for the whole family, on Saturday May 31, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Featuring games, a DJ, crafts and activities, the event kicks off a summer-long celebration of science and fun as part of the 97 Days to Play series of events, activities, celebrations, giveaways and more. Island Adventure Day is inspired by Fernbank’s current special exhibits and IMAX® films, including Whales: Giants of the Deep , Journey to the South Pacific , and Island of Lemurs: Madagascar. This special event day will provide guests with the chance to come face-to-face with live lemurs, as well as some other creatures that are native to the mysterious island of Madagascar. In addition to live animals, the day will feature DJ Trey Caples, who will ensure that all guests are entertained with island music, limbo...

Fernbank Science Center will host a celebration of National Astronomy Day on Saturday, May 10 th from 11 AM until 3 PM. This event is open to the public and geared toward all ages. It will feature informational literature, family activities, a chance to win a telescope, and an array of planetarium shows. The highlight of Astronomy Day will be a lecture by Cal Tech’s Dr. Jean Paul Ampuero, a professor of seismology, who will present a lecture on “Earth's Cocktail Party: Deciphering the Physics of Earthquakes With Networks of Seismic Arrays.” Dr. Ampuero will survey recent developments on the use of seismic arrays to provide unprecedented imaging of the development, process, and effects of earthquakes. His talk will focus on implications for our knowledge of how our planet (and others) work. Dr. Ampuero’s lecture, in the Jim Cherry Memorial Planetarium, will be free of charge, with regular admission charged for other planetarium shows. Planetarium schedule for May 10 t...

Audiences will be swept off to fantastical faraway places this spring when “ 1001 Nights: A Love Story About Loving Stories” hits the stage at the Center for Puppetry Arts for a limited two week engagement, March 25-April 6 . Broadway musical powerhouse Robert Lopez, innovative New York company The Flying Carpet and puppetry experts Center for Puppetry Arts, join forces as a “dream team” to create the ultimate “family puppet musical.” In this celebration of brainy imagination over brawn, a princess uses her wits to save a kingdom from an evil decree as she spins tale after tale for a narrow-minded king.  Featuring genies, jesters, 40 thieves and other captivating characters, the princess’s cliffhanger stories keep the king—and audiences—on the edge of their seats.  This playful adaptation of the “Arabian Nights” fairy tales is recommended for ages six and up.