Toby B

Toby is our uber-busy events editor for Mommy Poppins LA. Feel free to email Toby about events for our LA area calendar.

Latest posts by Toby

Fun & Free Things to Do with LA Kids this Weekend: Planes, D23, and Dino Days, Aug 10 - 11

Submitted by Toby B on Thu, 08/08/2013 - 1:11am

Remember last week when I said summer was only half-over?¹ Well, turns out I could not have been wronger.² Truth is, a whole bunch of you are going to be sending your kids back to school next week.³ Wondering if you’re one of the lucky ones?⁴ Check out our handy dandy guide to school start dates, (otherwise known as Academic Calendar Years.)⁵ Find out if your kid will be boarding the school bus on August what-were-they-thinking 13⁶, or if you have until September that’s-more-like-it 6 ⁷ to panic when you realize that your kid has grown two sizes since June⁸.

In the meantime, you’re going to want to make this weekend a memorable one. What a coincidence, we have some totally memory-making events to tell you about. The ultimate Disney fan event. The opening weekend of Disney’s Planes. A superduper Tea Party you can take your teddy bear to. (Or your stuffed Mickey Mouse, just to continue on a theme.)

Keep reading for some of our favorite picks for this it's-still-summer-til-the-fat-lady-sings ⁹ weekend...

Fun & Free Things to Do with LA Kids this Weekend: Ocean Appreciation, Shakespearean Superheroes and Ventura County Fair, Aug 3

Submitted by Toby B on Thu, 08/01/2013 - 2:00am

Oh, summer! I like having you around. Your weather is inviting, and our dance cards are filled with one fun activity after another. But I’m a little unsettled: with the arrival of August, does that mean our time together is half over? Or is it really half just-begun?

Perhaps I shouldn't worry. Some of the best activities of the season don't even start until August. This weekend we have the premiere of an all-new Shakespeare production that's free, outdoors, geared for kids and has -- wait for it I can't wait any longer -- superheroes! The Getty's Garden Concerts for Kids start this weekend as well, and they're free, outdoors, geared for kids (this is starting to sound familiar) and -- alas - no superheroes -- but who needs superheroes when you have those awesome views at the Getty that you get to by riding a train up from the parking lot!

And if you like superheroes and vehicles, boy are you going to love this next thing. It's actually many things, over 15,000 of them across the country in fact. Next Tuesday's National Night Out celebrates our communities, and gives families a chance to say hi to their neighbors, their police officers, and their fire fighters. And if your kid gets to pet a police horse or climb into a helicopter, all the better. We have a few local celebrations listed (Beverly Hills, Burbank, Santa Monica, and Studio City), but if those aren't near you, poke around a bit and odds are good you could find one closer to you. (We'd list them all but, you know, 15,000).

Keep reading for some of our favorite picks for this summer-in-full-swing weekend...

Fun & Free Things to Do with LA Kids this Weekend: Family Sandcastles, National Dance Day and Free Smoothies, July 27- 28

Submitted by Toby B on Thu, 07/25/2013 - 12:38am

This week we celebrate the birth of a great son of England. His arrival was most definitely magical, and celebrated across the wizarding world. Harry Potter is one year older, and the folks at Whimsic Alley are throwing him a shindig befitting a prince.

But perhaps you were thinking of another Brit who’s been getting a lot of attention: the Bard of Avon is as fresh as ever 449 years after his birth. The renowned wordsmith has productions going all around town: you can see free Shakespeare in Griffith Park or A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the VA’s Japanese Gardens, there’s even a superhero version of Twelfth Night coming up in Culver City.

But of course I jest. The big news across the pond is the birth of HRH George Alexander Louis, the 8 pound, 6 ounce bundle of royalty. Congrats to the happy family, and welcome to the parenting club. If you ever make it out this way, be sure to check out our events calendar for the inside scoop on what to see and do with your little one in La La Land. (But for now, just try to get some sleep!)

Keep reading for some of our favorite picks for this weekend...

Fun & Free Things to Do with LA Kids this Weekend: Wee Rock! Mandela Day and Free Lollipops July 20 - 21

Submitted by Toby B on Thu, 07/18/2013 - 1:24am

We will, we will rock you, singing, we will we will… oh, I’m sorry. Was I supposed to be writing about this weekend’s events? There are quite a few I promise you: the circus, the OC Fair, events celebrating underwater explorers and Nelson Mandela - even Comic Con is going on this weekend. It’s just that dang earworm I got going; the Wee Rock festival is this Saturday at the Americana at Brand, and every time I think of it I get that song going in my head: we will, wee will, rock you (at the Americana)…

They say the best way to knock out one of those pesky fellows is to replace it with another song. So what else do we have here? Free Lollipops at See's this weekend (on the good ship lollipop, it’s a sweet trip to my See's shop…) and Baby Loves Disco in Long Beach (I’m hearing some Saturday Night Fever action - you should be dancing, yeah!).

We have some big names performing in free concerts this weekend: A Flock of Seagulls (and I ran, I ran so far away), Billy Ocean (get outta my dreams, get into my car… Hey, you, get into my car!)... The movie Big is showing at Oscars Outdoors (totally seeing that scene where they play Heart & Soul by jumping on the giant keyboard…).

Awesome, that did the trick. Earworm gone. Keep reading for some of our favorite picks for this weekend, because we will, we will rock you!

Fun & Free Things to Do with LA Kids this Weekend: Circus, Physics Garden & the OC Fair, July 13 - 14

Submitted by Toby B on Thu, 07/11/2013 - 6:48am

It's all about the kids, isn't it? You do and do for them, find them the coolest water playgrounds, take them on picnics, treat them to the most delectable frozen delights, and take them to kids' clubs, kids' concerts, and kids run the bases. And just when you think you've done all you can do, you take a look at our summer guide and come up with a dozen more things to keep your kids happy and entertained. But what's in it for you? What does Momma get? How 'bout maybe a free blowout?

Of course, things work out best when kids and parents can enjoy the same things. Outdoor concerts (check), free movies (popcorn check), a Pirate Festival (aaarrrr! check), the Grease Sing-Along at the Hollywood Bowl (Sandy and Danny check), the OC Fair (deep fried check), Ringling Brothers and Barnum Bailey Circus (check with a big red rubber nose, shot from a cannon). Luckily our weekend calendar is filled to the brim with activities that everyone will love. And one that's especially for Mom.

Keep reading for some of our favorite picks for this weekend, and to find out about that free blowout...

Fun & Free Things to Do with LA Kids this Weekend: Bug Fair, Sanitation & Shakespeare June 29 - 30

Submitted by Toby B on Thu, 06/27/2013 - 5:26am

First, let me reassure you that there is plenty going on this weekend. Bug Fair at Kidspace (creepy crawlies!) Dora and friends taking on the Pirate Piggies (no swiping, Swiper!) Superman's 75th birthday, (he's still every inch the man of steel!). We close the lid on the season of Sanitation Open Houses, and say good morrow! to free Shakespeare in Griffith Park. This weekend you can shake your hips with Elvis*, the Beatles** and Weird Al***, and take in free movies galore.

But that having been said, this is one of those neither/nor weekends. It doesn't quite stand on its own, as it marks the beginning of what is for many a vacation week, but it's too far removed from the actual event to truly merit the "holiday" moniker. (Unless you're in Santa Monica, where June 29 is the new July 4th). No one's going to ask you "what are you doing this weekend?" The question is "what are you doing for the 4th?"

So we're here to help. We've compiled a crackling list of the hottest fireworks displays to keep you in the red, white and boom spirit. (You know what's better than watching fireworks? Watching fireworks on a boat.)

Keep reading for some of our favorite picks for the weekend ....

Scaring up the Fun at Monsters University: Parent Review

Submitted by Toby B on Wed, 06/26/2013 - 6:45am

Mike and Sully from the hugely popular Monsters Incorporated are back in a new prequel that shows how the scaring buddies first met. As in the original, the scares are played for laughs, though some very young viewers might get spooked.

Fun & Free Things to Do with LA Kids this Weekend: Monsters University, CicLAvia & LAX Appreciation June 22 - 23

Submitted by Toby B on Thu, 06/20/2013 - 3:40am

Okay, I know I said it was summer last weekend, but now it's really summer. Official like. The whole summer solstice, northern hemisphere most inclined toward the sun*, first-day-of-summer summer. So now you really ought to go out and do summer things. Go on a picnic. (We can help you with that). Go berry picking. (Covered). Frolick outdoors and pop some ollies and grinds on your skateboard,** (you're a bit old for frolicking, don't you think? But we can help with the skateboarding).

In fact, it is so very summer that we are already talking about the Fourth of July. Did you know you can watch fireworks from boats? Well, you can, and we can help you set sail everywhere from Dana Point to Lake Arrowhead to watch them bright sparklies.

One of my favorite perks of the summer is the many ways to see a movie for free. (Besides sneaking in the exit door, that's not playing fair). We can fill you in on the free (or almost free) kids' matinees, free movies under the stars, in the parks, at the beach and more. There are so many freebies you almost have to wonder why anyone would pay to see a movie. Scratch that, I know why: because Mike and Sully are back!

Keep reading for some of our favorite picks for the weekend ....