One of the benefits of living in an area like Broward County is all the amenities and resources available to families, children specifically. This was one the major contributing factors as to why we elected to live in this county, when I received my job relocation to South Florida. My husband and I try as often as often as possible to spend the weekends continuously exploring our surroundings, in order to spend quality time with the kids and also for use to familiarize ourselves with what we have at our disposal. Plus, I mean honestly. When else, other than the weekends, are we really going to be able to spend time with these kids?
In any case, fortunately, often time we don’t have to necessarily go too far (or spend much money) to find great affordable options on the weekends. For instance, back in the Fall, we attended the annual StoryBook Festival at our local Broward County Library.
Already this library is large with an impressive assortment of adults and children’s books. Beyond the books themselves, the space and setup is very easy to navigate as well as comforting, with a children’s play area that's nothing to scoff at. The floor dedicated to children's books includes a vast variety options and also has an area in the center for "play", providing educational STEM toys for use during your visit. We weren’t quite sure what to expect at this StoryBook Festival specifically, beyond an even GREATER variety of books, but we were actually shocked of what greeted us when we arrived.
It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon and the turnout that day was quite impressive. Outside the already filled up parking lot, there were various vendor stands set up advertising soccer camps, music lessons and various kid-centric goods. There were also activity tents set up for painting, coloring and other similar activities. Food wise, there was a plethora of options in the form of food trucks that surrounded the building. But there was even more to see inside.
Once we were in, there were selections of books for sale (and for giveaways) which did create quite a bit of congestion, it has to be said. Definitely get there early if you intend on being one of the first to get goodie bags and/or freebie since those all seem to go FAST, especially because of the crowd size. But beyond the tangible items available at the festival, there were also a panel discussions, including one with the author of the children’s book series Catsronauts. Since the kids were familiar with Catsronauts, we figured why not? Why not check out the panel?
We ended up doing just that and quite honestly, I think my husband and I got more of a kick out of the panel discussion than our kids did. The author walked through his creative process, considering his books are more like graphic novels meet comic books, with illustrated narrated panels as the basis of the books. It was honestly fascinating and when he used a simple sharpie and a large easel to show everyone how to draw a basic Catsronaut, my husband and I were mesmerized. It was, to be blunt, really cool to see and it made us wish we were creators (author, illustrator, comic book writer, we’re not picky).
All in all, it was a great outing for a Saturday afternoon which, at the end of the day, didn’t cost one thin cent. But, we got to spend time together, get the kids out of the house and actually partake in some educational activities. Win, win, win.
That said, if you're a parent new to the area and are looking for potential outings for your young kids, make sure to check the Broward County Public Library Page, and take a moment to review all the events coming up at your local branch. Beyond formal events, you can find the monthly calendar indicating weekly activities scheduled such as Family/Toddler Story Time, Youth Chess, Lego Club and Math & Logic Games to name a few. Perfect opportunities to get the kids out of the house, in an air conditioned environment and with some education thrown in there to boot. Beyond the children though, this is also a comfortable setting for other moms/parents to be able to socialize and mingle, which is so important whenever you're NEW to an area.
We ended up doing just that and quite honestly, I think my husband and I got more of a kick out of the panel discussion than our kids did. The author walked through his creative process, considering his books are more like graphic novels meet comic books, with illustrated narrated panels as the basis of the books. It was honestly fascinating and when he used a simple sharpie and a large easel to show everyone how to draw a basic Catsronaut, my husband and I were mesmerized. It was, to be blunt, really cool to see and it made us wish we were creators (author, illustrator, comic book writer, we’re not picky).
All in all, it was a great outing for a Saturday afternoon which, at the end of the day, didn’t cost one thin cent. But, we got to spend time together, get the kids out of the house and actually partake in some educational activities. Win, win, win.
That said, if you're a parent new to the area and are looking for potential outings for your young kids, make sure to check the Broward County Public Library Page, and take a moment to review all the events coming up at your local branch. Beyond formal events, you can find the monthly calendar indicating weekly activities scheduled such as Family/Toddler Story Time, Youth Chess, Lego Club and Math & Logic Games to name a few. Perfect opportunities to get the kids out of the house, in an air conditioned environment and with some education thrown in there to boot. Beyond the children though, this is also a comfortable setting for other moms/parents to be able to socialize and mingle, which is so important whenever you're NEW to an area.
All of that at the low price of a library card membership. How can you go wrong?
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